Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire
by Unique girl - YAYZ
Summary: Sakura's half sister is stolen. She must oversome her tainted blood and prove that not all children of God of Murder are bad, to save her. SasuSaku NaruHina NejiTen. Flames welcomed. Major AU! SasuSaku main pairing. T for language and violence
1. Unknown identity  The beginning

Right! A new story hooray! It's going to be long and complicated, so let me know what you think and whether I should continue it or not. This is definitely going to be AU. The ninja will be using swords and katanas to fight, while kunai will be projectiles. There will be a vast array of monsters not found in Naruto, like sirens, nymphs, golems, skeletons, trolls, goblins, banshees and more. Jutsu's will be the equivalent of spells and the whole thing is very complicated. Don't worry though, it WILL all get explained in time.

Disclaimer: This applies to every chapter so listen closely. I do not own Naruto, nor do I own the game Baldur's Gate: Shadows of Amn. I merely stuck them together. Got it? Good.

**_Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire_**

**Chapter 1**

**Unknown identity – The beginning**

Sakura's POV

Slowly, large emerald eyes opened. She ached all over. How long had she been here? More importantly, why was he waking her up again? Tiredly, she looked up. There he was. Orochimaru. The one who tortured them all. Sakura couldn't even remember who 'them' were. All she knew was that she was in pain, and had been for what seemed like months. He smiled at her, and her weak body shuddered. She couldn't take anymore of his 'experiments'. He was going to kill her, and she couldn't do anything about it.

"You are strong." He whispered. "Stronger than any I have ever met before. It is time for another test."

She shut her eyes and waited. Orochimaru was no doubt performing hand seals, and her fears were confirmed when he whispered the jutsu, always softly, so she could never hear what it was. She screamed in pain as it came. It was different every time. This one was a fire jutsu. Why he was doing this she didn't know. Once of a day she did, but all the experiments had robbed her of her memory. She knew her name but that was it. Eventually the pain left and the girl collapsed. She wasn't unconscious, but she was too weak to move.

"Incredible." She heard him say to himself. "She still survives. This one is mighty, no doubt about it…"

Suddenly there was a large crash and Sakura heard footsteps approach. They were small, most likely a goblin's.

"Master." A voice rasped. "Creatures from the outside have gotten in. They are causing havoc."

"What are you doing here then you fool?" Orochimaru seethed. "Go and stop them!" The goblin left, and after a few minutes hesitation, so did Orochimaru. Sakura relaxed. He was gone, at least for a while.

"Sakura." Someone whispered.

That voice. She knew that voice. It was a soft, female voice. Where had she heard it before?

"Get up. Now's our chance to leave!" The person sounded urgent. "Quick! While the cages are unlocked."

Sakura made one last effort and looked up. There was a blonde kunoichi, with big blue eyes and her hair in a ponytail.

"Who're you?" Sakura managed to ask.

The girl's eyes widened and filled with tears. "You don't remember anything? Sakura it's me! Ino, your sister."

Frowning, she tried desperately to remember. Ino _did_ sound a familiar name, but from where?

"We grew up together." Ino told her quickly. "We lived in Candlekeep. You, me and Haku! We're special remember? Gaara? The fight? Oh please, you must try to remember or we'll never escape!"

Sakura scowled harder, thinking, pushing through her brain, searching for her memories. Then it all came back to her! Well, some of it.

"Ino!" She cried and grasped her sister by the shoulders. "The…the fight…he took us just after we got Gaara…because we're…" She paused, trying to remember _what_ they were.

"Ita-spawn." Ino provided.

Sakura grimaced. Ita-spawn. How she _despised_ being an Ita-spawn. She couldn't quite remember **why** she despised it so. Ino was less-than-happy, but explained nonetheless.

"Okay look, here's what happened. Many years ago the God of Murder, Itachi, came to earth shortly after he was told he was soon going to die. He mated with many females on Earth, elves, humans, ogres, you name it, he had it. Every female he mated with gave birth to a child. These children were demi-gods basically. They were much stronger than normal people and they had tainted blood. Every one of these children would hear 'the call'."

"The urge to kill right?" Sakura asked as memories of this information began to return.

"Right." Ino confirmed. " Every night, the children would hear peoples blood in their veins, feel their pulse, hear their heartbeat. That was 'the call'. It was calling to the essence, the part of the child's soul that belonged to Itachi. If the person's soul was too weak, then the essence would take over the person, and they would get up and kill innocent people, just for the joy of killing them."

"In other words Itachi possessed them?"

Ino hesitated. "In a way, I suppose. After sometime, people realised what was going on, and the children were tarred with the name 'Ita-spawn'. People avoided them, killed them and isolated them. This drove the few Ita-spawn with strong souls over the edge. They became twisted and cruel and allowed the essence to consume them, body and soul. You and I are Ita-spawn, the only two 'good' Ita-spawn left. The only ones left who resist the urge to kill and fight it with their entire being. We have Haku to thank for that."

"He's the one who raised us, right?"

Ino nodded. "He raised us in Candlekeep. The only way we are related is through our father Itachi and Haku raising us together. Then…"

"Then Gaara came to hunt us down." Sakura finished. "He heard we were strong because we could resist 'the call'. Haku tried to smuggle me to safety, because I was the stronger one at that point, but Gaara found us. He…killed Haku, and together we went after him and killed him to avenge Haku's life. I remember now."

Ino smiled. "Good, because we need to leave now! Orochimaru left a while ago, and we need to be gone before he gets back. It was bad enough that he captured us just after we killed our half brother Gaara, I don't want him getting us again."

"He wants us so he can find out how to make himself stronger. Is that right?"

"Yep, now lets go!"

Sakura stood up. She had been feeling weak up to now, but with her memories back in place, a new determination filled her up. She stepped out of the cage and turned around, scanning the room. There were two more cages at the back, each one held a person.

"They were our comrades from when we killed Gaara." Ino told her.

Sakura nodded. She knew. She walked up to the man first. He would be easier to break out. The blonde haired boy looked up at her with bright sapphire eyes.

"Gosh aren't you a weakling?" She teased him. The boy growled. "The Naruto _I_ remember would never let himself be confined in a mere _cage_."

Naruto bared his fangs. Being in a cage for months would no doubt have left him irritable. Sakura hoped it wouldn't take too long to get his temper going.

"Shut up and let me out already!" He snapped, rattling the bars.

"You aren't worthy of carrying that little frog with you." She continued. She was well aware of what Gamakichi meant to Naruto, and she was sure it would rattle his chains. It did.

"What do you mean I'm not worthy? Gamakichi is the son of the giant toad lord Gamabunta! Of course I'm worthy! Oh you wait till I'm through with you!" Naruto bent the bars of his cage, clambered out and went for Sakura.

"Naruto you idiot, of course you are! I just wanted to make you mad enough to free yourself." She rolled her eyes.

"Huh?" Naruto turned around, saw he was free and grinned at the pink haired kunoichi. "You always _were_ smart Sakura-chan!"

Sakura waved him off and looked at the girl's cage. She had brown hair and brown eyes. The cage was locked, with a seal on it that required a key.

"Don't you worry Tenten." Sakura told her old friend. "Once we find the key we'll have you out of there in no time."

"It's in there." Tenten told her, pointing at a side room. Sakura winked at her, and casually walked into the side room. There was a large monster/machine in there, known as a golem, but it wasn't under orders to attack, much to Sakura's relief. Searching around, she found the key to Tenten's cell and a few swords with some armour made of leather.

'_Perfect!'_ She smiled. Waltzing back out of the room, she undid Tenten's cell and gave everyone a sword and some armour. Sakura was a good sword person. Haku had trained her and Ino well when it came to swords.

"You guys know how to handle them?" She asked, sticking her two-handed sword in a scabbard on her belt.

Everyone did. She nodded.

"Why don't we all stick together and make our way out of here? It'll be easier with us all as a team. Once we're outside we'll think about what we're going to do next." Ino suggested.

The group agreed that Ino's idea was a good plan, and set off following Sakura out of the room through an open door. They headed out into the corridor, and hopefully to freedom.

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Me: What do you guys think? Good or bad? Should I continue or give up? Let me know what you think because I promise it will get better!

**Inner Me: Baka! You forgot the most important part!**

Me: I did?

**Inner Me: Pairings?**

Me: Oh right! SasuSaku, NejiTen, NaruHina! Those are the pairings everybody, with some possible ShikaIno, but I'm not sure of that at the minute. Review please!


	2. Friends come and go

Okay, well, I got a couple of positive reviews so here's the next chapter! It's better than the last one, which was just telling you about Sakura and Ino's past. Now we get some real action. This entire chapter will be in Sakura's point of view, just to let you know.

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire**_

**Chapter 2**

**Friends come and go**

Sakura grumbled. They had walked for ages, through every corridor, just to find themselves back at the place where they started.

"It's hopeless!" She threw her hands in the air. "We've gone full circle! We found a key. That's all. A key and some kunai! What are we supposed to do with the key?"

"There's a door over there." Tenten said calmly, pointing to a door near the back of the room they had started from. It was so dark that no one had noticed it at first.

"But this isn't a door key." Sakura replied impatiently. She hated messing around with stuff like this. "It's a sort of…stone."

"A portal key to be exact." Tenten supplied. "I've seen one before. Maybe there's a portal in there?"

Sakura shrugged. It was worth a go. She cautiously opened the door. There had been too many close calls with traps already. Luckily, fate seemed to be on their side, because not only were there no traps, but there was a portal too.

"We're home free!" Ino chirped delightedly.

Naruto grinned, took the stone from her and slotted it into place next to the portal door. There was a whirring noise and a purple mist formed in the archway. Glancing at each other, the small group entered the portal. Sakura shut her eyes as she stepped through and prepared for her first breath of fresh air in months.

"What the hell?!" Naruto shouted somewhere to her left. She opened her eyes to see they were in another room.

"I thought as much." She sighed. "Orochimaru wouldn't just have a portal leading to the outside, anyone could get in. There must be another exit." Her eyes scanned the room.

There were only two ways out. The portal they had just come through and a small, brown door. Walking up to it, she searched for traps. Finding none, Sakura timidly went to open the door.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." The voice made them all jump, and Sakura whirled around.

A man with jet-black hair and dark eyes stood in front of them, hidden in a corner. He was wearing dark clothes, so he blended in perfectly with the shadows of the room. He gave them all a nod.

"Sai." He introduced himself. (A.N. Ha! Bet you thought it would be Sasuke! Not yet readers.)

"Sakura." She nodded in return. "Why shouldn't we go through?" The man eyed her cautiously, before seeming to deem her trustworthy.

"There are some machines in there. They generate mephits."

Sakura frowned.

"Those small, flying creatures that are so stupid they fly into walls when you cast the most basic genjutsu? What's so bad about them?"

"Alone? Nothing. But try packs of about 20 or 30 and they can easily overcome you. If you want to beat them you'd have to destroy the four generators. The generators go down, the mephits go down." Sai told them all emotionlessly.

"Sai, join with us. You might be able to help us get out of here, and as you can see…" Sakura gestured towards her friends. "Our group is rather small. We could use some extra help."

Sai smiled, but it seemed fake to Sakura. She shrugged it off, whatever it was, it could wait. Telling Ino, Sai and Tenten to stay in the shadows, she informed them that their job was to sneak up to a generator each and take it out. Naruto would hold off the mephits. They all agreed.

Sticking to the shadows, Sakura made her way to the furthest generator. Turning, she saw the others all in place, with Naruto ready and waiting at the door.

"Now!" She cried, slashing the machine with her sword.

All around her the other 3 were doing the same, while Naruto was having a whale of a time killing the mephits that were appearing on the platforms in the middle of the room.

"Jump on my sword while you can freaks! _I_ won't be as gentle!" He was shouting.

As the blonde boy continued his war cries, Sakura had finally managed to dispose of her machine. She ran to Ino and helped her, while Sai hurried over to assist Tenten. Finally, all four machines were destroyed and all the mephits vanished with a 'poof'.

"Hey! I wasn't done kicking butt!" Naruto's voice called out sulkily.

Sakura giggled. He certainly was the entertainment of the group. Sai laughed as well, although his was much more fake. Tenten began to laugh, but stopped suddenly and gasped. Ino turned to her, concerned.

"What is it Tenten?"

The brown haired girl raised a shaking finger and pointed to a table. On it was a boy. His body was mangled and bloody, bones sticking out all over the place and bruises everywhere. Ino shivered.

"That's disgusting." She said. "Don't look at it Tenten."

Sakura walked over, curious as to why Tenten was looking so horrified. She too saw the body, but she noticed something Ino hadn't.

"Lee!" She choked. "It's Lee!"

Rock Lee was Tenten's former love, 'former' because…well…he was dead, duh.

"Lee." Tenten whispered. "How could they? Those…those monsters!"

"It's Rin all over again…" Naruto moaned, pulling Tenten into a comforting hug and rubbing her back soothingly. "It's all right, I understand. It hurts."

The kunoichi pulled away, looking up at him with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry Naruto. It must hurt, I know you've been through this with Rin…I didn't mean to be so insensitive."

Naruto waved her off and have her a small sad smile. "Don't worry. After I kick Orochimaru's butt Rin can be avenged."

"Well, I want revenge on Orochimaru too." Sakura interrupted. "So since I'm already going to throw him to hell and back, I figure you could come along and help me out."

Tenten gave another glance at Lee's body, and Sakura ordered everyone out. She didn't want Tenten to suffer anymore than she had to, and being near the body wasn't good for her right now. As Sai passed he asked who Rin was.

"Rin was Naruto's Mamoru."

"His protect?"

"Well, the word means protect yes, but where Naruto comes from it is a name given to women. Every boy can only become a man after they protect their woman for a year."

"Oh I see. Since they have to _protect_ the woman, the nickname for the women _is_ protect. It's so simple."

"Well, Naruto's people aren't exactly genius'. They like to keep it short and sweet." Sakura grinned awkwardly, gesturing to Naruto, who was waving his arms wildly and telling Tenten, 'how the fuck he was going to kill that perverted snakeyfied homo'.

The group continued in silence, having finally calmed Naruto down, and went about effectively killing any of Orochimaru's creepy little summoned monsters in the way of their escape. As they walked along yet another corridor, Sakura groaned.

"This is ridiculous. We've been walking for hours! We just keep finding doors after doors after doors. We're never going to get out of this labyrinth!" Irritated she slammed open the door at the top of some steps and stomped through.

She opened her mouth to take up her rant again, but stopped when she felt cold, cool air seep into her throat. The air in the dungeon was _musty_. Sakura's head spun from side to side, looking about hopefully. They had made it! The door came out into an abandoned quarry _outside_ the dungeon! She jumped into the air, whooping and hollering. The others all made similar movements of triumph.

"Very good. You got out."

All success dancing ceased. The pink haired girl narrowed her eyes.

"Orochimaru."

"So, you got your memory back? You truly are an amazing woman."

"I'll take you down for what you've done to us!" Ino screeched.

Charging at him, Ino performed hand seals for a mind jutsu, although Sakura wasn't sure which one it was…Ino had many. Orochimaru began performing hand seals too. Sakura recognised them as summoning seals. Before the two could complete their jutsu's however, there was a burst of chakra, throwing them both backwards. A strange man dressed in a black cloak with a wolf mask over his face was stood before them.

"You two are under arrest, by order of the ANBU, for using jutsu's without a licence."

"What? She was just protecting us!" Sakura shouted at him.

"Maybe so, but we cannot permit the use of any offensive jutsu's without a licence. It is to keep the peace and safety of the citizens in tact. However, feel free to use medical jutsu's." With that the man disappeared in another burst of chakra, but this time, Ino and Orochimaru went with him.

"NO!" Sakura cursed, pounding the ground with a fist in frustration. It made quite the crack, but she failed to notice. "We need to get a licence and go after her! She's my sister and we vowed that we'd stay together no matter what." She turned to Sai. "Thanks for all your help Sai, but I think we can handle this without you. You'd better make yourself scarce."

Sai made a move to argue, but his eyes passed over the crater and he merely nodded. Turning around, he left. Sakura's face became hard and determined.

"We need to find out more about this ANBU, recruit some more people and get my sister back. I had to let Sai go. He was weaker than we needed and I'm sure there's something he's hiding. That boy isn't normal…" She gazed at the ground for a while, before snapping her attention back to her remaining two friends. "You can back out now if you want, but since you both want Orochimaru's head as much as I do…I think I already know what your reply will be."

"We promised Haku we'd look after you and we intend to." Tenten nodded, confirming Sakura's suspicions.

She smiled and they headed towards the nearest settlement, a cute little village called Konoha. Walking through without a hitch, the trio set their sights on the centre of the place. Once there, they went to the nearest inn. Tomorrow was going to be a long day…

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Me: Well, there you go. Enjoy!

**Inner Me: We'll try and update soon.**

_**Sakura: How come Ino got taken?**_

Me: Sorry Sakura, its part of the story. This event will lead to a much bigger event, although which one will take longer I don't know.

_Sasuke: Yo, I haven't appeared. Does this mean I'm free?_

**Inner Me: Nope, you come in a little later. Not too much later though. Just be patient.**

Me: Review please!


	3. Appearances

Oops, it's been ages since I updated. Gomen nasaii! -Bows lots- Forgive me loyal readers! Onto the next chapter. Also! All chapters will be in Sakura's POV unless stated otherwise. Enjoy!

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire**_

**Chapter 3**

**Appearances**

Stretching, Sakura dressed. Today they were going into town to see what they could find out about the ANBU. She walked slowly out of her room, not in any real rush. Why should she hurry? It would take time to find information and it was her first taste of the outside in months. She wanted to savour it. Walking down the stairs, Sakura tried to plan where they should start the search. Deciding the best option for now would be to observe, since her friends were all still in bed, she sat at a table in the bar and ordered some cordial. Drinking alcohol now wouldn't help clear her head, and she didn't like alcohol anyway. Sipping slowly, Sakura strained her ears to listen to people's conversations. Having had to do this before thanks to Gaara, the girl was quite talented at picking up snippets of important information. Her sharp hearing caught a few words that interested her.

"…got the whole place locked up tight. They say the people are stuck. The Konoha police force aren't allowed in and everyone's worried for their safety."

Sakura pondered about this. The ANBU had told her that it was their job to enforce safety, so this didn't sound like the ones they were after, but if someone was in trouble…well, the kunoichi wasn't one to turn down someone in need.

"Sakura-chan. We need to start looking for information and people to help us." Tenten's voice reached her.

Sakura stood and smiled. "I think we should check somewhere else out first if you don't mind. It might be interesting."

Naruto, who was stood a little way behind Tenten, nodded. Both of them knew her, so there was no doubt that they knew someone needed help. After paying the barman for the beds and the drinks, the tiny group left, heading for the main street directly in Konoha's centre. Once there, the three of them noticed straight away a small boy crying to people for help. Everyone just ignored him and Sakura felt a small flame of irritation flare up in her chest.

'_He's so young. He's begging for help and crying his heart out. How can these people be so cold-hearted and ignore him?'_ She wondered.

Motioning to her friends to follow, she approached the little boy slowly, giving him plenty of time to see her. She didn't want to frighten the little lad. Once they reached him, Sakura knelt down and looked him in the eye, a pitying expression on her face.

"Why are you crying little one?" She asked softly, like a mother would. "Are you hurt? What's the matter?"

"M…mummy went inside the tent…" The child sobbed. "She hasn't…come…out yet…The ninja person…said…it was too dangerous…to go find her…I want my mummy!" He wailed, burrowing his head into Sakura's shoulder, seeking comfort only a mother could give.

The girl responded as best she could, by rubbing his back and whispering soothing words in his ear. Finally, when he had calmed down, she pulled back slightly and stared straight at his face.

"We'll go in and have a look for her. Don't worry. What's your name?"

"Giran." He sniffled.

"Okay Giran, we'll find your mummy." Sakura cooed, before standing up and turning to her team.

Naruto was grinning, and Tenten had a knowing smirk on her face. They _knew_ she wouldn't be able to say no. Putting on her sweetest smile, the pink haired kunoichi walked to the ninja guarding the entrance of a tent a little way behind Giran.

"Excuse me, what seems to be the problem sir?"

"No one's allowed in. Everything is in disarray. Only certain people can enter." Came the reply.

"I see." She gave him her cutest pout, which made her look like she was thinking. "Do you think maybe we could go in and check? Giran here's lost his mother and we promised to help."

"No one is allowed in." The guard repeated.

Sakura gave him an adorable little frown. "Oh but…I promised." Turning on the puppy eyes, she looked at him tearfully. "The poor little lad. I'm so worried about the people inside. I've fought much evil and I do _so_ want to help. They must all be so scared! They could die and they'll never see their children or their family and all that talent will go to waste…" She gave a delicate sob. "If only I could go in it might be avoided, but I can't…unless…you could find it in your heart to let me and my friends pass through?" She gave him a hopeful glance.

The guard seemed to be struggling with himself, before glancing around and stepping aside, telling them to go in quickly before anyone noticed. As they passed, Sakura winked and thanked him, skipping cheerfully into the tent. What she saw made her gasp in surprise. A genie appeared in front of them, or at least it looked like a genie. What other creature wore those weird turban things with wristbands and no legs, just a ghostly tail? The genie looked at them and after a few minutes introduced himself.

"I am the master's creation. A summon if you will. Welcome to the world of Zabuza. Answer my riddle and I shall let you pass."

Sakura shrugged. It seemed simple enough. "Tell us then."

"Very well. There is a prince and a princess. The prince's age is half of the princess', plus a third of his own."

"So if you find a third of the prince's age, and a half of the princess' age and add them together that's his age?"

"Correct. The princess is 10 years older than the prince. What are their ages?"

Naruto turned to Sakura, baffled. Tenten had a puzzled frown on her face, as though trying to figure out the answer. She sighed and also turned to Sakura, shrugging. Sakura herself was amazed. How could they _not_ know? It was so simple!

"The prince is 30, the princess is 40. A third of 30 is 10, half of 40 is 20. 10 + 20 30, and 40 years old is 10 years older than 30." She answered.

"You are correct." The genie said emotionlessly. "Pass through." He disappeared and a small bridge came into their view.

"Wow Sakura-chan, how did you figure that out?" Naruto asked in awe.

"I thought it was obvious." She replied, feeling slightly embarrassed that they were looking at her with such admiration.

After walking across the bridge, they found themselves in a circular room, with peasants and monsters. There was an ogre, a very large, humanoid creature, but pretty dumb, and a spider. Not an ordinary spider though, a summoned one, huge. The funny thing was though, the ogre and spider were tied up, and the peasants were roaming freely. Sakura wasn't fooled. This appeared to be real, but it was obviously fake. Having Tenten hold Naruto back to stop him rushing in and slaughtering the monsters, Sakura snuck around towards the ogre.

"Excuse me." She whispered. "Why are you tied up?"

The ogre grunted, seemingly trying to tell her something, but was unable to do so.

'_Just as I thought. It's too smart to be a real ogre.'_ She thought to herself. Creeping past the ogre she headed for one side of the room, where there were two peasants.

"Are you two okay?" She called, trying to be normal.

"Yeah." They replied. "We thought they were going to get us."

"I see." Sakura said, coming closer and motioning behind her back for her friends to go behind the peasants. "How did you tie them up like this?"

"Uh, well…they weren't that smart…so it was easy to get a hold of them." Was it just her, or were these peasants struggling to spit out their story?

"Ah…so do you normally carry around heavy chains and ropes?" She asked calmly, as Naruto and Tenten got into position.

"Ah screw it!" One of them shouted.

'_Well, that was easy.'_ She thought.

"Let's just kill her!" The two charged at Sakura, who drew her sword. Behind the peasants, Naruto and Tenten had drawn their weapons as well.

Sakura jumped backwards, as the first man took a swing at her with a strange looking sword. Then, she used the momentum to twirl around in a circle, slashing her own sword through the air and running the first person through. The second, a woman, had mysteriously disappeared, but Sakura wasn't fooled. Whirling around, she ducked, and narrowly avoided a punch. Before she had chance to jump though, the woman stuck out a leg and kicked her in the chest. Sakura used her arms to block the attack, but it was enough to send her backwards slightly. By this point, Naruto had gotten behind the woman and had his sword raised.

"Bye bye." He said, giving his trademark grin, before bringing the sword down smoothly, cleaving the woman in two.

"Nicely done." Sakura gave him a grin of her own, before turning to the sword the man had dropped.

"This is a sword of ogre-slaying." Tenten informed her, picking it up.

Without a word, Sakura took the sword and walked to the ogre. Bringing it up, she winked at the creature and swung it down.

**CLANG**

The chains fell away from the beast where Sakura had cut.

"Just as I thought. It was actually a key to release her." She voiced aloud.

"T…thank you…" Came a timid, female voice.

She turned to the young girl now stood in the place of the ogre.

"I…th…thought you were going…to k…kill me." She stuttered.

"Of course not." Sakura waved her off. "What's your name?"

"H…Hinata." Was the reply.

"Hinata, you have a sword." Tenten observed.

"Y…yes. Master Hiashi t…taught me how to use the s…sword when he took me in. Could I p…perhaps join your group and r…rescue him?"

"Hinata." Sakura said seriously. "We are looking to recruit permanent members. Our goal is to kill Orochimaru and find my sister. To do this we have to investigate ANBU. Also, before you associate with us, both my sister and I are Ita-spawn. Are you sure you still want to join this group?"

Hinata considered her for a while before nodding. "I saw you. You help people. That is not evil, so I will join." She said, dropping her stutter.

Sakura smiled at her. "Then welcome aboard! I'm Sakura, this girl is Tenten and the blonde dork over there is Naruto."

"Ne, ne Sakura-chan! I'm not a dork!"

Hinata gave him a small smile. He looked cute and there was something about him that got her attention.

"Ano, Hinata-chan, are you okay? That ogre genjutsu didn't hurt you right?" The loudmouth asked.

"I'm fine Naruto-kun, arigatou."

After the pleasantries were over, they found a spider poison antidote on the woman's body, and poured it over the spider. It too turned into its true form. The woman turned out to be Giran's mother, Hannah, and they sent her out for her son, telling her not to say a word of what was happening except that it wasn't over yet. She agreed and left. Sakura turned to the stairs and went up, the others not far behind.

When they reached the second floor, they found to their shock, a gathering of werewolves and shadows. Werewolves, as I'm sure you know, are humans that take on wolf form. Shadows are what they sound like. 3D shadows that stand like a human and wander around fighting. Sakura noticed straight away that a lot of the monsters were genjutsu, so she freed her friends from the genjutsu, although most of her team didn't notice her doing so. Finally, with just the real monsters left, they drew their swords a second time and plunged into battle.

A few minutes and war cries from Naruto later, every evil creature was dead. After ransacking the room for any useful items, a couple of kunai, they headed up the next set of stairs. Once they reached the top they saw a strange man with bandages over his mouth and odd clothing. His skin was rather grey and his black hair was short and spiky. He seemed to be attacking a small blob of green slime. Whatever, or perhaps whoever, that slime was, Sakura knew she had to protect it. There was no doubt that this man was Zabuza.

Sneaking up behind him, she drove her sword into him, ordering her friends to heal the slime and make sure it wasn't hurt. The Zabuza she attacked turned into a log and Sakura yanked her sword out of it, scanning the room for his chakra.

'_Behind me!'_ She thought, spinning around and slashing with her sword like she had done earlier on the first floor. She managed to catch his chest before he darted away, making hand seals. Recognising them as summoning seals, Sakura realised he must have summoned creatures and then cast a genjutsu to hide their true nature. Knowing the necessity of stopping him, she punched the ground using some of her super strength. The crack caused was so wide, that Zabuza had to stop performing hand seals and grab onto the ledge to prevent himself falling down it. Using this as a golden opportunity, Sakura stabbed her sword into his head and pulled it out again, quick as a flash. Zabuza slowly let go of the ledge he was holding onto and fell into darkness, fading away as he did so. The genjutsu around them melted away, and the ninjas found themselves in a small circus tent.

The green slime had become a man, Hinata was calling him Hiashi and had mentioned about him earlier. Sakura went up to him and healed his wounds using her medic skills.

"Arigatou Sakura-chan, my skills as a medic are a bit weak." Hinata thanked her.

"I'll teach you how to do them better Hinata." She smiled at the blue haired, violet-eyed girl.

Hiashi sat up. "Yes, thank you…Sakura was it?" She nodded. "Thank you Sakura. If you say you will teach Hinata medic skills, this means you are taking her on some kind of journey? If so, please take care of her and thank you again. She needs to see more of the outside world."

"I'll look after Hinata-chan as though she was my Mamoru! Dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed grinning like a Cheshire cat.

After a few farewells, the group left, a new member in its midst. Hinata would no doubt be a good addition to the team, and Naruto couldn't help but look at her fondly.

'_I think.'_ He thought to himself. _'That this is the God's way of helping me become a man. Without Rin I can't do it, but maybe with Hinata-chan…it's possible. What is it about her? She's nothing like Rin. Rin was loud and stood up for herself. This girl's practically the opposite, but I feel so strongly for her. I've only known her a few minutes, but if this works, maybe…maybe she'll be my Mamoru?'_ Naruto glanced at Hinata, who gave him a shy smile. He grinned back at her.

Sakura was also grinning.

'_They have the hots for each other. How sweet.'_ She thought to herself. _'If only that would happen to me…'_

Shaking her head clear of such thoughts, she wondered where to head next. The slums seemed a good idea. There was often lots of gossip and info to be had there. Making her decision, she made a sharp left and headed for the slums, team close behind.

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Me: Well, there you go! Enjoy.

**Inner Me: Yeah. Mum's just told us off because we're meant to be in bed.**

Me: Never mind, it was worth it. It's actually longer than my other chapters! 8 pages and normally I do about 5 on word.

_Sasuke: I still didn't appear!_

Me: Soon Sasuke-kun, soon.

_**Sakura: Review please!**_


	4. Both friend and foe A new member

Gomen nasaii people! I haven't updated for ages I know! School stuff got in the way so I do apologise. In return for you all being patient, I shall bring in a person a whole chapter earlier than I intended to! Here you go!

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire **_

**Chapter 4**

**Both friend and foe – The group's newest addition**

Sakura delicately wrinkled her nose. She had always hated the smell of the slums district. Not just here, but everywhere, they always smelt the same. Disgusting. Taking a deep breath, she tried to forget the smell and focus on her task. Information gathering. Setting Hinata to make sure Naruto didn't do anything stupid, she grabbed Tenten and headed towards a man.

"Excuse me, I was wondering if you could point me in the direction of…"

"You're a ninja." The guy interrupted, staring at her outfit.

"Yes but…"

"Come to my house, I have a request. I heard you were looking for some information."

Sakura was immediately suspicious. This could be a trap. Unfortunately it was the best lead they had.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"Gaelan Bayle." He replied. "I know people who might be able to help you, but it isn't safe to talk here."

Sighing defeatedly, she called to the others to follow. This turned out to be more difficult than it sounded, because Gaelan was taking very twisted alleys, through lots of large crowds. It was hard to keep an eye on him. Luckily, just as Sakura thought she'd lost him completely, she caught a glimpse of his bright crimson shirt disappearing into a house. Dragging the others behind her, determined not to let them lose her, she hurried over to the house and entered.

"Oh good you made it. I was frightened you hadn't kept up."

Sakura snorted. Just who did this guy think he was?

"We kept up well, thank you. It just took a few moments to compose ourselves before entering your house. We didn't want to look messy." Tenten answered before Sakura could get a word in.

This was very clever of Tenten because had Sakura been allowed to answer they would have been killed or thrown onto the street for their rudeness. As it was, that wasn't necessary.

"Right, like I said, I know people you could ask for information on your sister. They're a tad…" He hesitated. "Shady. So to protect themselves, they have asked me to tell you that you must pay a price before I inform you who they are and how to reach them. You must pay 20 000 GP."

Sakura blinked. How on earth were they supposed to pay that much? If she hadn't gone to rest at the inn last night she would wonder what GP was, but she knew that since they had been in the dungeon for so long the currency being used had changed from ryou to GP.

"I see you are worried about paying that much money. It's easy, I know some people." He eyed them. "You look like the good, honest type. You should try talking to Tayuya. I hear she is willing to pay for help. You can find her in the 'Copper Coronet'. It's an inn in the middle of town. Go down the alley and take a left." With that, Gaelan pushed the baffled ninjas into the street.

"I guess…we head to the Copper Coronet then?" Hinata asked, looking up at Naruto who was stood beside her with a look that said 'What just happened?'

"Yeah. It's our only lead." Sakura mumbled. She didn't like being told what to do by people she barely knew, but this was for Ino and…well…if it brought her closer to her sister, Sakura would put up with it.

Heading down the alley, she looked for the inn. She took the first left she came to and there it was. The Copper Coronet was a dingy looking inn. Its paint was peeling and it was a dirty shade of orange. Several windows had been broken and had cardboard over them, while the door was nothing more than a plank of wood on hinges. Sakura shivered. It looked very rough. She wasn't scared, (A.N. Yeah right, sure you aren't Sakura) she could handle herself, but she never had liked rough places. They made her think of thugs and rapists, like the ones she had read about in the books in the library back home. Glancing behind her at the team and reassuring herself that they had her back, she plunged into the foul smelling building. The minute she walked in though, she ran back out, gagging. The smell of alcohol had almost overpowered her and she retched emptily into a barrel nearby. Hinata rubbed her back soothingly. Eventually, Sakura stood up, wiped her mouth, gave Hinata a grateful nod and turned once again to the inn. This time, she took a deep breath before going into the place, and once inside she took a few very small breaths. She still felt slightly nauseous, but that soon wore off as she looked around. Naruto had gone cheerfully up to the bar and was trying to order none alcoholic drinks. Despite his ferocious appearance, the bartender seemed to be friendly enough.

"I don't see anyone looking for help." Hinata observed.

"I'll go and have a talk with a few people. We might get some information then." Sakura nodded bravely. She denied it a lot, but even though she _claimed_ she wasn't scared, places like this freaked her out a lot. She could put up with dungeons and some terrible places, but she couldn't stand graveyards, corpses or the slums.

Getting up, she walked cautiously over to a group of men.

"Hey." She chirped, smiling cheekily and sounding much more confident than she felt. "Can one of you hunks be so kind as to point out Tayuya for me?" She poked a finger into her cheek cutely. "I'm supposed to be meeting her here, but I've never met her before."

One of the bigger men stood up. He was twice her size and shoved his face into hers. "You must be her cousin with that pink hair of yours. I never believed she actually told the truth about that."

"Yeah." Sakura replied, going along with the story. "I've just arrived in town and she said to meet her here."

"Right this way missy." The guy replied. He gave a smirk to his friends and lead Sakura towards the stairs. "She's just up here. Said to look out for you and let you know which room she was in." He chuckled.

Fear churned in Sakura's stomach. She didn't _want_ to be alone with this guy. Sure she had super strength and could probably kick his ass in a minute, but the idea of him trying to get her was freaking her out so much that all her ninja training was dribbling out of her ears. She was disobeying the 1st rule of being a ninja. She was letting her instincts take over and panic was consuming her as a result. Sakura gulped and let him lead her. He might be okay and she was just being paranoid, but her ninja training, or what was left of it, was screeching at her to smack him one and run. It was too late now though. He had pushed her into a room and was shutting the door and locking it. There was no one else in there with them.

'_He's going to rape me!'_ She shrieked in her head, but her fear had her paralysed and she couldn't make her mouth work to scream.

Terror swirled throughout her body as the man turned to face her. She could get out of the door. If she could just get her limbs and chakra under control then she could get out. But she couldn't. Her perfect chakra control was as strong as ever, but no matter how much chakra she sent to her limbs, they remained numb with fear. The man drew closer, a wicked smile on his lips.

"Well, well." He smirked. "Looks like I have you all to myself."

'_No, I have to move!'_ She thought. _'I have to!'_

The guy took another step towards her. Sakura still couldn't move. Step. Nothing. Step. Zero. Step. She was going to be raped. Step. She might be killed. Step. This was it. Sakura shut her eyes tightly. The bloke put a hand to her face. Perfect. Sakura smirked, then sent a burst of chakra through her cheek into his hand, severing all the nerves and destroying as many as she could in his spine during the brief second he touched her. It was more than enough to have him on the floor in agony.

"Paralysation jutsu." She said, freeing herself from the jutsu. "A simple jutsu that makes someone think they are paralysed with fear. Clever, but not clever enough." She smirked down at him.

The guy smirked back.

"Correct. Unfortunately for you…I wasn't going to rape you. I'm not the one you need to fight."

"What?" Her brows furrowed together.

"Look up. You're her next feast." He laughed.

Looking up, a feeling of dread in her chest, she saw a huge mutated spider. This wasn't a summon. It was a result of experiments on normal spiders.

"My pet isn't very happy that you did that to me." He coughed, standing up. "She's going to eat you nice and slowly. Prefers the feisty ones she does. Put up a nice struggle won't you?"

'_Shit!'_ Sakura mentally swore.

She couldn't open the door now. The spider would escape into the inn and eat everyone. She'd have to face it and its master alone.

"What do you think you're doing?" A voice said.

Sakura started. Who else was she going to have to deal with?

"You're not doing anything to this girl. Not while I have a say in it." The voice continued. It sounded male.

"And just who're you?" Sakura's attacker demanded.

"The guy who's going to kick your ass."

**BANG!**

'_That was fast!'_ Sakura thought to herself.

Before she'd had a chance to blink, her attacker was on the floor and the spider was on its back next to him, legs all curled in towards its abdomen. She felt the presence that had saved her drop behind her and grunt.

"Coward. Attacking a helpless girl." The person tutted disgustedly.

"I'm not helpless!" Sakura cried out indignantly. "I didn't get a chance! You knocked him out before I could move!"

Her saviour grunted and walked past her to check the guy's pulse.

"I didn't kill him. Good. The others should be here to apprehend him soon…"

"Who are you?" Sakura blurted out.

He turned to face her and she wished he'd turn back again. She couldn't think properly with him looking at her. He was absolutely gorgeous! He had pale skin, onyx eyes and blue-ish black chicken hair. She couldn't see his body through the dark, black clothes, but from the way they fitted on his skin he seemed quite muscular, not overly to make it look gross, but enough to look really hot.

"Sasuke Uchiha." The man answered. "Who are you? And why the hell did you go with him, can't you see he's trouble?"

"Of course I can, I was hoping to get some information out of him."

"About what?"

"Eh…" Sakura stuttered what should she tell him? Deciding that the truth was probably the best option she finished her sentence. "About a girl called Tayuya."

"Tayuya?" Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "She's downstairs. She has pink hair, like yours, you can't really miss her."

Sakura slapped her forehead. "Dammit all! You'd think that's the sort of thing I'd notice!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Hn."

She shot him a glare. "Don't 'Hn' me. I can't help it if I don't know who I'm looking for."

The Uchiha glared back. Sakura didn't back down. Suddenly, he smirked.

"Very few people can stand up to my glare." He told her. "You must be a strong person."

Sakura shuddered. _Strong._ _Strength_ was the reason Gaara killed Haku. _Strength_ was the reason Orochimaru experimented on her and Ino. Being strong sucked!

"Are you cold?"

She shook her head. "I don't like being strong. It causes problems." She whispered.

'_Why am I telling him this? He doesn't need to know!'_

She straightened up and flashed him a smile.

"Thanks for saving me Sasuke, even if I didn't really need it. It's appreciated." She turned to leave.

"Wait."

"Huh?" Turning back, Sakura eyed him curiously.

"I need you to stay. You might need to make a statement."

"Oh do you work for the police force?" She asked.

"No." He answered sharply, sounding offended.

"Gomen, I didn't mean to upset you…it's just…you sound like some sort of authoritative figure…"

"I am. Just not the police. Useless idiots." Sasuke spat. "I'm a member of the Konoha Shinobi…at least…I'm in training." He replied, staring intently at the wall.

"Oh…" Sakura had no idea who the Konoha Shinobi were. "I'm new in town could you…?"

"The government of the people in Konoha. We solve their problems and keep order, things that are above the police and below the ANBU."

"I see. Sounds important. You want to join?"

"Aa."

"Do you always use one syllable sentences?"

"Aa."

"That's not an answer."

"Hn."

"Neither's that."

"Whatever."

"Well, it's an improvement." She giggled.

Sasuke grunted.

"So other than solving problems, what do Konoha Shinobi do? I mean, if that's all you do you're just police really…"

"We hunt."

"Hunt?" Sakura had a bizarre image of Sasuke, topless, in face paint, riding a horse with a bow and arrow in his hand, like a Red Indian. It was a strange image, but hot. She felt herself blushing.

"Yeah. Like bounty hunters but only for a certain type of people."

"Type of people?"

"Aa."

"Sasuke." She moaned warningly.

"Ever heard of Ita-spawn?"

Sakura froze. "I…I think so."

"We hunt them. They're a danger. Put innocent folks at risk. Had one last week. Murdered 20 people in 3 nights."

She grimaced. Not only was that exceedingly wrong of the Ita-spawn, but she was in danger too.

"This guy here is an Ita-spawn. I was tailing him, so it's rather lucky for you that Konoha Shinobi hunt them."

"Y…yeah." She stuttered. Oh the irony…

"So anyway. You need to give a statement when my colleagues get here."

"I can't!" Sakura screeched. She had to get away, get to safety. Hadn't she suffered enough? Nearly being raped and killed by her own half brother, (though she was disgusted to say it) and now she was being asked to give a statement to her hunters?

"Why not?" Sasuke asked, fully intrigued as to why she had freaked out.

She didn't say a word. She just stood there trembling, trying to remember what Haku had said to do in these situations. He had told her to kill if she had to, just get away. But she didn't _want_ to kill and there was no other way to escape. Although she kept silent, Sasuke was obviously not stupid, for he put two and two together in a matter of 3 seconds.

"You're an Ita-spawn."

Sakura stared at him with large, jade eyes. Eyes that were filled with worry, confusion, pleading and pure fear. He considered her for a few moments.

"You aren't on the list of wanted Ita-spawn…" He began.

She didn't dare hope.

"I can't let you go free…I'll travel with you. Should you do anything to put people in danger I'll have to arrest you or kill you."

Sakura let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding and gave him a weak but heartfelt smile.

"Arigatou. I didn't realise what I had gotten myself into when I entered this town."

"Hn." He grunted. He seemed to be thinking. No doubt wondering if he'd done the right thing.

"Since you'll be joining my group I suppose it's only fair to tell you my mission." Sakura grinned at him, her fear gone in the excitement of having such a hottie on her team.

"Mission? Team?" He gave her a confused look, but it was gone in a millisecond.

"Yeah. My sister and I have been in captivity for…" She pondered for a few minutes. "I don't know how long for. Since the ryou was still in use."

Sasuke's eyes widened, but again, the look lasted only a moment.

"Go on."

"Well, we escaped, but…things have changed since we were captured. My sister, Ino, tried to use a jutsu when our captor attacked us. Neither had a license and ANBU arrived and took them away. I'm trying to find her and save her. Also, I want to kill our captor for doing this to us. Do you know him? I don't know how well known he is but his name's Orochimaru…"

Sasuke gave an unbidden yelp of surprise.

"Orochimaru? He's number 1 on our wanted list."

"So you can help me!" Sakura gave a delighted laugh.

"Your sister…is she…?"

"Yeah. She's an Ita-spawn, otherwise she wouldn't be my sister. We grew up together."

The Uchiha contemplated her for a few minutes before…

"Fine. Let's meet the rest of your team."

Sakura hugged him ecstatically, then dragged him out of the room by his arm. Taking the stairs two at a time, she reached the lower level and rushed to her table, shoving the shocked boy into a seat.

"NewmembercalledSasukeUchiha,bereallynicebecausehe'salmostamemberoftheKonohaShinobiandhe'sgoingtohelpuskillOrochimaruandsaveIno!" She babbled all in one breath.

Sasuke just stared at her in outright confusion.

Naruto laughed.

"You'll understand that fast speech soon enough. Hinata here's only been with us for half a day and she already understands. My name is Naruto Uzumaki by the way! Nice to meet you Sasuke." The blonde shook hands in a friendly manner.

Sasuke was surprised he had understood a word of what Sakura said and that he had learned his name already. He gave the girl known as Hinata a nod and turned to the last girl.

"Tenten. Old friend of Sakura's. Believe it or not, Naruto's right, you'll understand her babble soon enough. Be aware, Naruto's not the brightest light bulb…" She said, gesturing to Naruto, who was scratching his head in puzzlement.

"What are you talking about Tenten? I'm not a light bulb…"

Tenten rolled her eyes.

"Didn't you say something about finding Tayuya?" Sasuke turned his attention back to the pink-haired kunoichi, who was failing to notice all the men in the bar staring at her chest since her little outburst.

"Oh yeah!" She chirped. "Do you know her?"

"Not personally, but I can take you to her."

He stood up and led her past all the awed stares, glaring at anyone who looked at her for more than 3 seconds, which was most of the bar. Why was he being so cold to anyone interested in her? He barely knew the girl. Maybe he was being paranoid because she was an Ita-spawn. Sasuke was lying to himself. Sakura wasn't like the other Ita-spawn and he knew it. She didn't seem to like the idea of death unless it was to serve justice and she wasn't trying to kill everyone.

"Here she is." He said, motioning towards another pink-haired girl who was a fair bit taller than Sakura, with darker skin and a plainer face.

'_She's not as pretty as Sakura.'_ Sasuke observed to himself, before mentally slapping himself and reminding himself that she was an Ita-spawn. A _beautiful_ Ita-spawn, more beautiful than any other person he'd ever met, but an Ita-spawn nonetheless.

'_Why don't I find her annoying?'_ He wondered. _'If it was anyone else, her actions would bug the hell out of me…but nothing. It's kind of endearing…what's different about her?'_

Maybe it was the fact her personality was so contrasting, changing from one minute to the next. First she would be confident, then it looked as though she was cornered, but suddenly she'd have a wave of intelligence shine through, then she was feisty, next she might be needy and helpless, then angry, cheeky, amused, switching sharply to a frightened waif, before she suddenly became chirpy, bright and childish again. Perhaps it was the fact you could never predict what she was going to do next, but whatever it was, it made Sasuke more and more interested in finding out about this girl. He wanted to know everything there was to know about her. He wanted to recognise little things that would indicate a mood shift, to find out more about her past, to know just what it was that made this girl tick. That was all beside the point of course. He was Sasuke Uchiha, and he had a job to do. Emotions and wants could wait until after he had accomplished his goal and become a full member of the Konoha Shinobi.

"Are you Tayuya?" Sakura was saying, oblivious to everything going on in Sasuke's head.

"Hai."

"I hear you need some help. Me and my ninja team would be happy to assist you."

"I'm willing to pay you."

"I know, but what's the problem? That's what I'm more interested in."

"Well, this guy called Sakon has taken over my house! I live in a keep, a really big house with servants and a courtyard, and my parents look after the surrounding land, renting it out to farmers, stuff like that. He says that my father promised I would become his bride, and he took him down to the lowest levels of the keep. He won't let anyone in until I come down to marry him. The whole place is swarming with trolls and stuff. Those gangly creatures with tiny bodies and heads, and arms so long they scrape the floor. Their legs make up nearly all of their height and they stand about 6 foot tall. They're everywhere."

Sakura grinned.

"I guess it's a blessing I have pink hair then isn't it?"

"You hair is brighter than hers." Sasuke pointed out. "Hers is more of a dirty pink. If they had seen her before they'd know."

"Yes, but a little transformation jutsu would fix that, my team could slot into place with the guards and then we kick their butt when we're down there and save Tayuya's father! While we're on the upper levels we can kill the trolls and have a good old fashioned spring cleaning." She turned to Tayuya. "Just mark your home on my map and we'll sort everything out. We'll need a few days to get settled and tie up a few loose ends in this place first though."

"Arigatou! Can you get it all done in 3-5 days?" Sakura nodded. "Great!" The girl cried. She snatched the map off Sakura, marked her house and ran out of the inn, calling back… "I'll be waiting for you there and then!"

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Me: I know it took ages I honestly am really, really sorry! I brought Sasuke in a whole chapter earlier to try and make up for it slightly and this chapter's even 12 pages long in word!

**Inner Me: Why didn't you update earlier?**

Me: I had homework and head-girl duties. I just didn't have time to focus on this.

_Sasuke: So I finally appeared. Great…can I go home now?_

Me: No.

_**Sakura: Review please! –In the background Sasuke shouts GOSH DAMNIT ALL-**_


	5. Permits and pasts  Sakura's shame

Gomen, gomen, gomen! I am soooooo sorry! I know I promised to update earlier, but I'm in my last year of school so I'm really busy. I am honestly and truly sorry! Gomen nasaii! T-T

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire**_

**Chapter 5**

**Permit's and pasts – Sakura's shame**

Taking another deeply soothing breath, Sakura grimaced. She needed to get out of this horrible inn soon, she was starting to feel sick again. Signalling for her friends to follow, she began to make her way to the door, with the intention of going to the government district, which Sasuke said was the place they could get a jutsu permit. Before she managed to reach it though a large, mouthy guy came hulking towards them. Sakura stood stock still and stared at him curiously.

"Oi, Pinky!"

Her eye twitched. Only friends could call her Pinky, and even then only if she was in a good mood, otherwise…well, it wasn't pretty.

"Hey! You deaf or something? Forehead girl! I wanna talk to you!"

Her fists began to shake. Forehead girl followed similar rules to the nickname Pinky. Forcing air into her lungs, she gave him a big smile, trying to be sweet. He might have come to help after all.

"Yeah. You heard me then didn't you? Well, your team of ninjas sucks! My team's better! Clear off girlie and stop trying to act so tough! That job in the keep was _ours_, not yours!"

Sakura glared at him, but tried to keep her cool. Losing her temper would not help.

"Sorry about that. I thought the job was only available for people with brains. Guess they must be pretty desperate to consider you guys." She told him, her voice dripping with false sugar and light.

"Huh?" She almost collapsed.

'_Great, another Naruto.'_ She internally groaned, but her face remained calm.

"Oh sorry. Was that too difficult for you to understand? Let me make it simple. You're really too dumb to take on a job like that. People would only take you on if they were desperate and you were a last resort. Understand now? Or were the words too big for you?" She smirked.

"Are you making fun of me?" The guy thundered. Sakura put on an appalled face.

"No such thing! After all, it's not _your _fault. _You_ can't help it if you're as dull as a sack of rice balls."

"You wanna fight or something? Is that it?"

"Sorry." She smiled and prepared for the final blow. "I don't hit little, weak, stupid girls." With that she turned and began to walk away.

"You're just a coward!" The guy called to her. She ignored him. "You're scared to take us on. You know you'll never beat the great Amalas, especially not with _that_ pathetic team you call ninjas! The blue-haired one looks like she's blind. Take on cripples do you?"

While Sakura had control of herself, someone else in her team did not. He had felt his anger growing from the minute this guy started arguing with Sakura, and now his instincts were urging him to fight. He had pushed it aside, until Amalas made the comment about Hinata, who looked hurt. Unable to take anymore, he jumped in.

"If Sakura-chan won't defend her own honour, then I, Uzumaki Naruto, will, and Hinata-chan's as well!" He shouted.

About 3 minutes later, Naruto was wiping the blood off his face. Amalas was lying face down and the cries of 'Kill, kill, kill' had finally died down. Sakura grabbed Naruto by the ear, motioned for the rest of the team to come, and then dragged him off to the corridor upstairs.

"Naruto." She said warningly. "What did you do that for?!"

"He was insulting us! I had to defend our honour!" The blonde exclaimed.

"There was no need! I had him mentally beaten. If you hadn't started the fight, he certainly wouldn't have forced one. Do you want to get us all thrown in prison?" She demanded.

Naruto shook his head and looked down guiltily.

"Naruto did the right thing." All heads turned to Sasuke. "That man is wanted for frequent violence and minor crimes. He didn't just save your honour, but he also saved the Konoha Shinobi a lot of needless work. That guy wasn't really worth our time anyway." He finished with a bored look.

"That's not the point!" Sakura cried. "Naruto. You know the dangers of doing that. You don't just go around killing people, remember what happened last time?" The loudmouth nodded sheepishly. "Right, and we don't want to deal with _that_ again. Now you just watch that temper of yours. Got it?" Another nod. "Good."

"Ano, what _did_ happen last time?" Hinata piped up.

Sakura said nothing, a dark look passing over her face. She whirled around and stalked off by herself. Tenten pulled Hinata to one side.

"Don't take it personally Hinata-chan. You haven't offended her or made her mad or anything, she just feels guilty and ashamed about it. We never really warned you not to ask her about stuff like that, so we don't expect you to know or understand it. Just try not to mention it to Sakura again."

"Why? What happened? As her team we have a right to know." Sasuke watched her emotionlessly.

Tenten hesitated and turned to Naruto for his opinion. He looked just as anxious as her and shrugged. Making up her mind, Tenten opened her mouth, but before she could get a word out, Sakura came back.

"What happened was very painful and I have no desire to re-live it." She snapped, which was a very odd thing for her to do, as she was normally quite good-tempered and cheery, or at the very least, coldly polite.

Sasuke was having none of it.

"No. If we are to be on your team we have to know what to expect."

Sakura sighed and turned to Tenten.

"You can tell them, but I don't want to hear a word about it when I get back. I'm going off to have a look around and see what other information I can gather. If they don't like it they're free to leave." And with that, she headed off to the bar back downstairs.

Tenten cast a worried glance in her direction, but thought it best to leave her be, at least for the time being. Sakura wasn't angry, even though she appeared to be. She was ashamed to talk about it, and let her defensive instincts take over whenever the topic was brought up. Turning her attention away from her pink-haired friend, she began to tell them everything.

"Well, it all happened before we were captured by Orochimaru. We were chasing a man named Gaara, an Ita-spawn, about as evil as they come. He had killed Haku, Sakura and Ino's carer, and the two were out for revenge…"

**-FLASHBACK- **

"**We're nearly there Sakura!" A young girl with long brown hair and big black eyes called.**

"**Perfect Rin! Once we talk to this guy, Gaara's location is as good as ours and Haku will finally be able to rest in peace." Sakura smiled.**

"**Yes! Our youthfulness shall prevail!" The boy with the bowl haircut cried.**

"**Oh Lee." Tenten sighed. He was **_**always**_** talking about youth.**

**The group of 6 walked into the house before them.**

"**Hello?" Ino shouted.**

"**Hey!" Naruto joined in.**

**Tenten tutted.**

"**That won't help. He might be afraid and hiding." She pointed out.**

**Suddenly, two men came down the stairs. One was holding a large bag, the other a rather sharp looking sword covered in a red liquid. Sakura stepped forward.**

"**Excuse me, you wouldn't know where…" She never finished that sentence, as the man with the sword immediately whirled around, with the obvious intent of running her through.**

**Sakura tried to reason with him, but the robber, (it was rather obvious what they were) was having none of it. He seemed insistent that no one lived once they had seen the two. Just as she was about to give up and run for the authorities, Naruto burst into the fight, unable to contain himself any longer. A great deal of blood was shed at his hands, and Sakura felt something strange and all too familiar growing within her.**

'**Go on.' It whispered. 'Join in. Bathe in their blood. Murder them all. Think of how good it will feel…' Sakura shook her head.**

**This was wrong. She mustn't give in to her darkness. It had tried before, but always failed. It wouldn't succeed this time either. The voice wouldn't back down though. It sent strange waves through her body. They frightened her, but at the same time they were so soothing.**

'**Blood lust.' The voice told her, stronger now. 'It's a marvellous thing. Doesn't it feel good to give in? Just this once? Think, let it go…why hide it? Why resist? No one else does. You could kill Gaara in a minute with this power and it's so satisfying. You've been good for so long, why not let go? Just one time…it can't hurt to try can it?'**

"**Just…this once…" Sakura murmured to herself, her half-lidded eyes glazing over.**

**Her darkness was overwhelming, she couldn't fight it. No…something sparked within her. Something light rose up inside the darkness. It took on a very different voice. This was pure, loud, confident, challenging. It did not appeal to her like the darkness was doing, it told her the cold, hard facts, forced her to see what was really there, informed her how sure it was that she could overcome this.**

**Now the darkness was back. Flattering, appeasing, telling her it was alright, just **_**once**_**. Now the light, dark, light, dark, light.**

**Sakura clutched her head. It hurt. The fighting in her mind hurt, her whole being hurt. She wanted to spill blood, to drink it, to **_**enjoy**_** it, but at the same time she felt repulsed, disgusted, sickened and she never ever wanted to do such terrible things. She let out a cry of agony. The darkness had never fought so badly, and she had never had to resist to hard. It would be so much easier to just give in. She didn't want to and yet she did want to. She could see the small pulses on the skin of the people around her, she could almost feel the liquid on her hands. She felt their heart beats, as though she were cuddling them and could feel it through her skin. Those oh-so tantalising sounds of blood sloshing through their veins. It was intoxicating. She wanted it and yet she didn't want it. She did. She didn't. Did. Didn't.**

**The girl fell to her knees, hands over her eyes, clutching at her head, screaming out in pain. Then…she collapsed to the side, her eyes glazed, her hand on a kunai. She threw it, her aim perfect, catching Naruto in between the shoulders, just a little to the side of his heart. The darkness had won for long enough to throw the kunai, but the light quickly prevailed, just managing to change the kunai's fatal course at the last moment of it leaving her fingers. But despite the kunai not doing any fatal damage, Sakura was deeply ashamed. The darkness had won. Only for a split second, but it won. She stood up, senses fully regained and ran with all her might to Naruto, healing him as best she could and apologising all the while. Although the wound was minor, the damage had been done. Sakura's heart was in about a million pieces.**

**She had let Haku down.**

**Once Naruto was healed, Sakura turned and fled, sobbing, into a dark corridor, Ino close on her tail…**

**-END FLASHBACK- **

"…And there you have it." Tenten sighed. "Sakura came back after a few hours and while she was gone we all swore we would never speak of it again. She has never forgiven herself for letting the darkness take hold, nor for hurting Naruto."

"So if we spill too much blood she may lose herself again?" Sasuke asked.

"No." Naruto interrupted, his face set in a grimace. "She would never lose herself again. After that, she worked doubly hard in her efforts to resist the darkness. She even went as far as spending a few years with the elves before we went after Gaara, just so they could train her. They trained her all right, I don't know how, but they did, and she has much more control over her tainted blood. We discovered that the 'light' she heard was her soul. The elves must have given her some sort of soul training, because she is more than strong enough to fight 'The Call', and her soul is stronger too. It must be, otherwise she wouldn't be able to fight it."

"But she is a potential danger." Sasuke insisted.

Naruto shook his head determinedly. "Sakura-chan has grown up a lot since then. We didn't meet Gaara for years after that, and Orochimaru's had us imprisoned for a long time too. She has much better control of herself than she used to and she has learnt how to deal with situations like that. Also, if she was going to let the darkness take over her at all, she would have done it while we were captured, but even when she was on death's door I never once saw her lose herself again."

"Sakura-chan is very brave." Hinata said quietly. "To have to bear such a burden on your shoulders, and then use it as motivation…It is difficult at the best of times…but when you have the guilt standing by your side every day…" She glanced at Naruto, who was rubbing the shoulder where the kunai had hit all those years ago. Even though Sakura had healed it, there was still a tiny scar to serve as a reminder of what had happened.

"She was only 16 at the time." Tenten told them.

"So young." Hinata stared in the direction Sakura had gone in, in a state of awe. "She is truly amazing and extremely strong."

Sasuke said nothing, but followed Hinata's gaze.

"She's back." He told them all, not showing any signs of what he might be thinking about, on his face.

Sakura took a deep breath and continued towards her team. Naruto and Tenten were smiling at her, but had enough sense not to stare and began a conversation about the old days when they were hunting down Gaara. Hinata and Sasuke, on the other hand, were watching her every move. Hinata looked awed and Sasuke was…blank. She returned their gaze steadily but sadly. Then, Hinata walked up to her and gave her a tight hug.

"You are so brave and such an inspiration to us all Sakura-chan." She mumbled.

Sakura allowed tears to fill her eyes and returned the hug. It was like a sisterly hug, the ones she and Ino often shared. It felt like years since she had last seen her sister even though in reality it was only a day or two. After a few moments they pulled apart and Sakura flashed Hinata a grateful smile, before wiping her eyes and turning to her team, a much cheerier grin on her face.

"Come on! There's a guy at the end of the corridor who's married and he's seeing this girl and his wife's just downstairs! Should I tell the wife or not?"

"Tell her." Tenten answered. "She has a right to know."

Everyone nodded and Sakura called to them all to follow. Heading past the man and his lover, the group headed downstairs to the wife.

"Excuse me. Madam?" She began.

"My name's Tiana if you don't mind. Have you seen my husband Rumar? I need to talk with him."

"Well, he's upstairs but I think you should know…"

"Thanks very much." Tiana interrupted Sakura and began climbing the stairs.

Hurriedly, the ninjas followed. Knowing they might be needed to keep the peace. Taking the steps two at a time, they all reached the top quickly, just in time to see Tiana and Rumar's lover, Priss, mouthing off.

"I'm his wife! You're nothing!" Tiana screeched.

"He doesn't want you! He loves me!" Priss hissed back.

The two began to claw at each other and slap and pull hair. Sakura jumped in before the fight could escalate and scolded the two.

"Come on now! He's not worth fighting over. He's cheated on you Tiana, and what's to say he won't do the same to you Priss? Can't you see? He just wants attention. Leave him be, if he wants to play with your hearts then he isn't worth your love. You can both find better men than him. Honest, decent, loyal men. Don't waste your time on Rumar. Show him that you are respectable ladies who can do much better. Don't fight, because that's what he wants."

Priss and Tiana looked guiltily at each other, nodded, shook hands and left. Rumar was alone, looking terribly uncomfortable. Sakura didn't even bother herself with him, choosing merely to glare at him and leave silently, friends in tow.

A few minutes later, the small group found themselves out of the slums and in the government district. The difference was phenomenal. There were parks all neat and tidy, clean streets, white houses and almost no rough-looking people. They were all nobles and leaders of respected clans.

"I want to leave as soon as we've done our business here." Sasuke told them.

"Why?" Tenten asked, but Sasuke shook his head and said no more.

"Why?" Sakura repeated the question.

Sasuke sighed. "My father and I don't see eye to eye exactly. I'd rather not stay here long, as our house is in this area."

She nodded knowingly. If anyone could understand not seeing eye to eye with their father, it was definitely her. After promising to keep it short and sweet, Sasuke agreed to show them where to get their jutsu permits. He led them to a very large domed building in the centre of the district.

"The council of six building." He told them. "They represent the ANBU and are the government of Konoha. We can get the permits here."

The raven-haired Uchiha took the ninjas through many twisting, turning corridors, stopping outside a large wooden door. He knocked and entered, indicating for the others to come in.

"Corneil-sama, we need jutsu permits." He stated simply.

"5000GP and sign the register. The 5000GP will cover all your group and any others that join." The man known as Corneil replied.

Sasuke silently handed over some money, though Sakura hadn't known he had any on him, and signed a register. One by one the rest of the group also signed, Sakura being the last one. Corneil nodded at them, a sure sign of dismissal, but the kunoichi had a question for him.

"Corneil-sama, you represent the ANBU correct?" She enquired, despite Sasuke's glare that said 'don't even go there'.

"Correct."

"Could you possibly give me any information on the well-being of Ino Yamanaka, or the state of Orochimaru?"

"No." His eyes tightened and he looked at her closely. "I'm sorry but I merely represent them, I do not have access to such information."

"Oh." She couldn't prevent the look of disappointment on her face. "Arigatou."

Corneil nodded and the group left. He stared at the door for a few minutes, but shook his head and allowed himself to forget the whole affair. This girl had nothing to do with him. He never thought of her again.

Meanwhile, Sasuke was giving Sakura a right telling off. He told her how foolish she was and how dangerous it was to ask such a thing, or to speak to Corneil about such secret affairs, to which she replied that she was gathering information and she was only curious, plus adventures like this included taking risks and how was she to know? She'd only just got out of captivity and things had changed. The argument ended with them all back at the Copper Coronet in the slums and Sasuke and Sakura refusing to speak to each other. They checked in to the hotel part of the inn and went to their separate rooms.

Sakura sat on her bed, letting her anger melt away. It didn't do to get angry, it wasn't healthy, and Sasuke was only trying to help. There was a knock on the door, so she got up and went to answer it. To her surprise, Sasuke was stood there.

"Sasuke?"

"Hn."

Sakura groaned, but stepped aside. "Come on in then."

He walked through the door and turned to face her as she shut it and looked at him curiously.

"I came to apologise."

She poked his forehead cautiously. "Are you really Sasuke? The Sasuke I know isn't the type to apologise."

He waved her hand off, irritated. "Yes, it's me."

She looked him up and down, scrutinising him, before smiling. "Okay, I'll believe you. What do you want Sasuke-kun?"

"I told you. I came to apologise." Sakura sighed.

"I know that, but apologise for what?"

"For snapping at you. It wasn't very courteous of me."

"Has Tenten forced you into this?" She asked suspiciously. Tenten was often forcing people to apologise.

"Tenten forces people to do this?"

'_I guess it's not Tenten.' _She thought to herself.

"Anyway." Sasuke continued. " Like I said, it wasn't courteous of me, and one of things about being a Konoha Shinobi is that you have to be courteous. I should've known better. Gomen."

"It's alright. I was in the wrong too. You were only trying to help and you know this place better than I do. I should really be _taking_ your advice rather than scorning it." Sakura shuffled, smiling apologetically.

Sasuke smirked.

"Well, at least you've realised how I'm so much better than you."

Sakura stuck her tongue out childishly.

"You wish." She said.

A few more minutes of friendly banter later and Sasuke bid her goodnight, leaving for his own room. Sakura got changed into her night clothes and got into bed. Tomorrow they would go down into the bar and see what they could find to refresh and relax themselves before heading out to Tayuya's keep. Her head fell asleep not long after it touched the pillow.

Naruto stood gazing out at the stars through his window. He needed to see Hinata battle. He really wanted her to be his Mamoru, but he couldn't ask her until he knew just how strong she was. She had to be strong enough to keep herself alive, but weak enough to need at least a little protection. There was a timid knock on the door, and Naruto opened it to see a shy looking kunoichi who had been on his mind a lot lately.

"Naruto-kun." She said. "You seem distracted, are you alright?"

In fact, Naruto had been thinking all day about having Hinata as his Mamoru and whether he could deal with that, he had come to a decision, but he needed to see her skills.

"I'm fine Hinata-chan. Just been thinking. The story about Sakura you know? Brought back a lot of memories." It wasn't really a lie. The story _had_ made him think back to his time with Rin, it was just, he had used it to consider making Hinata his new Mamoru or not.

"Of Rin?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah." He sighed wistfully, going back over to the window and gazing at the stars once more.

Hinata's heart pounded painfully in her chest. He was still in love with Rin.

"She was a good friend." Naruto began. "But she isn't here anymore, and it's hard learning to cope with that. Rin was like a sister to me. A lot of people thought I loved her, but it was more sibling love, even though we weren't related."

Hinata watched him. His posture was relaxed and he seemed at ease talking to her, whereas when Tenten had brought the subject up earlier, he had tensed up and started trying to change the topic.

"Is there anything I can do to help Naruto-kun?"

He gave her a grin. "Actually yeah. If we don't get a chance to fight soon, could I maybe spar with you? I want to see how skilled you are."

"Ano…of course Naruto-kun, but how will that help?"

Naruto's grin softened to a smile. "I need to see something that could determine the answer to a choice I'm about to make."

"If seeing me fight helps then I'll gladly do it Naruto-kun."

"Arigatou Hinata-chan."

The two stood there, staring at the stars for a few more minutes before Hinata announced that she really should be getting to bed and she hoped Naruto had a pleasant nights' sleep.

"Night Hinata-chan." He called softly so as not to disturb the other guests, but loud enough for her to hear.

"Night." She called back.

Tenten was already fast asleep when Hinata returned to her room. Although the girls were separate, she could hear Tenten through the wall. The girl was crying in her sleep, saying something about loneliness and 'Lee-kun'. Hinata hoped Tenten would find someone to cheer her up soon, being so depressed couldn't be healthy for the poor girl. Gradually, the crying stopped and was replaced by the sound of calm breathing. Satisfied that Tenten was okay, the pearl-eyed kunoichi allowed sleep to consume her as well. The ninja all slept peacefully, ready for tomorrow.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Me: Well there you have it! 12 and a half pages on Microsoft Word. Hope it makes up for such a long wait!

**Inner Me: z****zZZ**

Me: Uh, sorry about her, it's getting late and she's tired, but at least it's peaceful.

_Sasuke: So when does…mmph!_

Me: Bad Sasuke. You know you aren't supposed to give away the story line!

_Sasuke: No need to slap your hand over my mouth!_

_**Sakura: Shhh, you'll wake Inner.**_

_Sasuke: Oh yeah._

Sasuke & Sakura: Review please!


	6. Slaves in the slums

Sorry! I KNOW I promised a faster update, but my internet died! There was no way for me to post it, I'm honestly so sorry. T-T

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire**_

**Chapter 6**

**Slaves in the slums**

Stretching as the sun poured in through the window, Sakura pushed herself off the bed and skipped to the wardrobe. She quite happily dressed and strapped her sword to her hip, unsure as to exactly _why_ she was feeling so chirpy. Maybe it was the sunlight, filling the room with warmth, or perhaps it was the birds singing outside her window, or could it just be that she had slept well? Whatever it was, Sakura felt great and she practically floated downstairs towards the bar. It was a lot quieter at this time in the morning, since everyone had hangovers from their alcohol binge. Heading towards a booth, she caught sight of the barman. He had been on shift since last night and it didn't seem very fair to Sakura.

"Hi." She said, walking over to chat. She had nothing else to do until her team woke up anyway.

"Hey. Name's Bernard. What can I get ya?" He asked amicably enough.

"Nothing thanks. I just wanted to talk. I noticed you've been on shift ever since last night. Haven't you had a break?"

Bernard laughed good-naturedly. "O' course I 'ave." He replied with a rather thick accent. "I got some rest when the bar shut. We don't stay open fer th'ole night ya know! Just fer most of it. I get ta bed round midnight 'n I wake up round 7. Most people're still in bed, but ya get one or two up fer their coffee 'n tea."

"Oh I'm sorry. If it weren't for me you could be asleep!"

"Naw, I'd be up anyways. My sleepin' pattern won't let me sleep fer more'n a few hours. Was like that since I were a lad. T'aint your fault young lady." He gave her a friendly grin and winked. She smiled in return.

"Surely you have other facilities than just drinks? I mean, there was a lot of people in here last night, they weren't _all_ alcoholics were they?" Bernard went very quiet.

"If'n you wanna know 'bout our other services you're best off talkin' to th'owner. Man named Lehtinan. He's round back."

"Thanks." Sakura replied wandering off.

'_Why did he go so quiet when I mentioned other facilities?'_ She wondered.

Coming to the conclusion that he must have thought she meant prostitutes, she shrugged it off and sat down at a booth, waiting for the rest of her team. One by one they all trooped down the stairs, in varying states of alertness. Naruto was still half asleep as he slouched down the stairs, Hinata looked tired but was much more aware, Tenten had dark bags under her eyes, as though she hadn't slept much, but other than that she seemed fine, while Sasuke appeared as though he was wide awake and never needed sleep.

After they had all woken up slightly, (-cough Naruto cough-) Sakura mentioned her conversation with Bernard.

"We should definitely check it out." Tenten said. "It might be something shady."

Sakura nodded. She was beginning to wonder that herself.

"Tenten-chan is right. It could be something that needs attention." Hinata spoke in turn.

"It might be nothing, but it would be better to check it out." Sasuke put in his piece.

"Then it's settled! I, Uzumaki Naruto, will go and find out about this." Naruto cheered. He left the table and Sakura went off upstairs to get his sword. He had forgotten it…_again_.

He was gone for a few minutes and came back looking terribly frustrated.

"What happened?" Tenten asked.

"Well, I asked him if he knew of any illegal activities in the bar and he denied everything!"

Sasuke mentally slapped his forehead. Glancing over at Lehtinan, he noticed the man watching them, seeing who was with Naruto. Turning his attention back to the group, Sasuke decided that there was only one person Lehtinan might talk to about this. The only one not here. Sakura. Without a word he stood up and left the table, slipping a note into Tenten's hand as he left, telling her to make sure no one would suspect Sakura was associated with them. Walking calmly up the stairs he called back.

"I just remembered, Naruto forgot his sword. I'll be right back."

He wasn't a moment too soon, for the minute he reached the corridor, Sakura came along. He pulled her into his room, away from the stairs. She looked up at him, wide eyed and confused.

"Something wrong?"

"Yeah. Naruto told the guy we were looking for illegal goings on."

Sakura rolled her eyes. Typical Naruto.

"The owner knows that me, Tenten and Hinata are all part of his group, but you weren't there so he has no idea you're in on it too. If you go down and act like you don't know us, we'll take care of Naruto. Then you can find out more about these activities."

Sakura nodded and silently handed Sasuke Naruto's sword.

"See you stranger." She giggled before heading off to her room. "Make sure Naruto doesn't spill the beans!"

She waited for a few minutes after Sasuke had gone down the stairs, before descending herself. She chatted to Bernard the barman for a bit, pointedly ignoring her friends as though she didn't know them. Then, after a few sips of her tea, she went up to Lehtinan.

"Are you the owner?"

"Yes." He replied warily.

"I see. I just wanted to congratulate you."

"Why?"

"Well, it's just this is such a fine establishment. The barman is ever so friendly. If it weren't for all those people getting into fights it'd be a really nice little place." She sighed and shook her head. "Shame isn't it?"

"Yeah." Lehtinan was easing up a bit, she could tell. His muscles were less tense and his whole posture was relaxing.

"It's just a shame you only provide drinks." She mentioned casually. "I mean this inn has real potential. You could have all sorts of entertainment here. I bet loads of people would be interested. I know I would be. Still, we can't have it every way we want can we?" She winked. "At least the ale's good."

She sipped more of her tea nonchalantly. Lehtinan seemed to be thinking.

"What sort of entertainment would you suggest?" Snap. The trap in Sakura's head clicked shut.

'_Got him.'_ She thought.

"Oh well…" She pretended to ponder for a moment. "I'm not too sure. Dog fights? Pit fights? Any of the usual ones I guess. I'm fairly new here so I'm not sure what sort of entertainment you have in this village, but where I come from…" She flashed him a cheeky little grin. "Well, let's just say it wasn't entirely _legal_, but it sure was popular. I often paid quite a bit to see the 'shows'. It was just a case of knowing the right people if you know what I mean. You had to be trustworthy, keep it a secret from the authorities. If you told…well…there was no more entertainment."

He gave her a small secret smile.

"We can't talk about it here, but we do have some entertainment like that. In the back rooms, here's a key." He tossed it to her and she deftly caught it.

"Nice. I'll be sure to get my whole team in there, we all enjoy a bit of _illegal_ fun from time to time. What's the point of following the rules if you don't get to break them every now and again?" Giving him a smirk and a final wink, she made a big show of walking upstairs, whistling.

The whistle was a signal to Sasuke that everything was taken care of, so once the rest of the team finished their drinks, they went upstairs to 'pack'.

"Well?" Sasuke demanded, when they were all crowded safely in Sakura's room.

"Bingo." She grinned, twirling the key on one finger. "Now, all of you transform into other people. I don't care who, just someone. You'll be my team and we can go into the back rooms."

They all transformed, and so as not to look suspicious, Naruto transformed into a girl using his sexy jutsu, but a clothed version without the whisker marks. Then, everyone headed downstairs, and Sakura gave Lehtinan a little wave, before heading into the back rooms with her key. A bouncer was just inside, but she greeted him and flashed the key. He merely nodded and let them through another door just behind him without a hitch. Inside, there were a few nobles from neighbouring towns and villages, all crowded around a large hole.

The hole was a square pit dug deep into the ground so no one could climb out. There was lighting all around so people could see, a gate at either end of the pit and sand on the floor. In places there were patches of red and the air smelled musty, with a hint of something else that Sakura couldn't quite place. On the far side of the room, there was a sort of balcony over the pit, where a man stood with a microphone. She went over to speak with him, and came back about 5 minutes later looking very grey and disgusted. Hinata asked what was wrong but Sakura shook her head simply saying, "You'll see."

And see they did. Just after Sakura returned, the man on the platform revealed himself to be an announcer. He began narrating everything going on in the pit. What was going on was a man was being killed. It was a fighting pit. Slaves were captured and forced to fight monsters for entertainment. It was grisly at the best of times, but these slaves were obviously kept in terrible conditions, for the man in the pit was so thin you could see his bones through the skin. He didn't even try to dodge as the minotaur, in all it's half man, half bull glory, swung a large battle-axe, cleaving him in two. As he lay dead in a pool of his own blood, the sand around him turned red as it absorbed the liquid. It looked like all the other patches of red dotted around the pit.

Sakura was reminded of the Roman Colosseum and was fully disgusted at what she saw. Averting her eyes delicately, she noticed a door just behind the announcer with 'Staff Only' written on it. Nudging Sasuke, she glared meaningfully at the door. He got the message, and all 5 of them snuck through it without anyone noticing. They followed the long corridor but saw no more doors, just a dead end. Confused, Sakura searched again, and this time, she came upon a hidden door. It seemed rather obvious to her, but no one else saw it. Sasuke did, but only when he activated the Sharingan.

"It's an illusion, but why can you see straight through it?" He asked.

Sakura shrugged. "I have no idea, I've always been able to see through illusions. It's just a gift I guess. I can see well in the dark too."

'_Infravision? That's something the elves have.'_ Sasuke wondered, but shook his head. Now was not the time to be pondering how Sakura could see like that.

The pink-haired girl herself opened the secret door, rendering the illusion useless, thus breaking it. The minute they were inside, they noticed that the room was not empty. There were guards, but they were all asleep, probably from drinking so much beer. That wasn't what caught the ninja's attention though. It was the cells in the back of the room that did that. Dingy, tiny cells, with walls black from filth and the floor damp where the roof leaked. The bars were thick and there were no windows. Each cell was about the size of a cupboard under the stairs, with a piece of wood attached to the wall and straw on top. There was a thin blanket on all of these 'beds' and altogether there was about 25 cells crammed together, in the already over-crowded room. There were two people per cell.

Everyone was sleeping, trying to ease the pain in their, no doubt, aching bodies, but one man was up and awake, pacing the floor of his tiny 'home'. He could only take about 3 steps before he had to turn around again, but he continued his pacing nonetheless. Sakura went up to the middle cell where he was.

"Excuse me." She said softly. The man jumped.

"Who are you? What do you want?" He snarled.

Sakura didn't wince. He'd had it hard, she understood. Putting a finger to her lips, she shushed him.

"Are you one of the slaves here?"

"Who wants to know?"

"Sakura Haruno. I'm a friend and personally I'm disgusted by how you are all being kept. I can see there are children here and I intend to do something about it!"

The slave's eyes widened and he studied her.

"No one's ever been brave enough to do this…" He began.

"Then no one's ever had a sense of decency." She countered.

He smiled and held out his hand. "Hendak. Been fighting for most of my life. That's the only reason I've lasted so long here. I used to be a body guard for an important captain, but he was killed in a raid and I was brought here."

She took his hand and shook. "You know my name. Sakura. I've also had to fight for most of my life. Call me a protector of the people if you will."

Handak looked her up and down. "Yeah. I can quite easily believe that you're a fighter. You've got a good strong body structure for someone so small, and that sword you have there can't be light."

"You look the part yourself." She replied grinning. Hendak, like the others, was very thin and you could see his bones, but unlike the others, he still had muscles on his arms, legs and chest from having to fight.

Turning to her friends, she drew a kunai and made a motion of dragging it across her throat, then pointed to the guards dotted around the room. Everyone understood the simple gesture, and in a matter of minutes, all the guards were dead without a single sound being made.

"The keys aren't on any of the guards." Hendak explained. "The Beastmaster has them. Go back to the pits and there's a door on the Southeast wall. He's in that room, but be careful, he has all sorts of creatures in there."

Sakura gave him a grin and promised to return with the key. They all snuck back into the pits without anyone realising they had ever left, Sakura even gave the announcer a friendly nod, and he nodded back. Just as Hendak had said there was a door on the Southeast wall. Once again there was a 'Staff Only' sign, and once again the ninjas ignored it, going straight into the room. They found themselves surrounded by bears, panthers, leopards, minotaurs and mutated gibberlings, creatures similar to mephits but slightly smarter.

Sakura left Tenten, Naruto and Hinata to deal with the monsters. She took Sasuke and headed straight for the Beastmaster at the back of the room. He was a tall human, with a thick brown beard down to his collarbone and shaggy black hair. His eyes were small and beady, while his nose was sharp and hooked like a hawk's beak. She drew her sword and Sasuke did likewise. The man looked quite distressed.

His animals did the fighting, he just controlled them, _he_ couldn't fight! Sakura smiled innocently at him.

"Bye bye!" She chirruped and slashed his chest with her sword. Sasuke also took a swing, catching his shoulder. The two continued until he had so many gashes he simply bled to death.

"I would have preffered to stab him and make it quick." Sakura sighed. "Unfortunately, these swords are made for slashing not piercing, so I guess it couldn't be helped."

Sasuke went to help mop up the last of the gibberlings and Sakura searched the Beastmaster's body. It didn't take long to find the keys to the cells, he wore them on his belt. She also took some money from the body. He wouldn't be needing it anymore and they might need healing herbs or soldier pills. Satisfied that everything was dead and there were no more surprises waiting for them, the group slipped back through the pit room to Hendak's cell room. Hendak looked surprised and pleased to see them, especially when Sakura began jangling the keys in front of him.

"You got them! Amazing!" He cried. "Unlock us please. I'll take care of Lehtinan and the families can all escape."

"Where will they go?" Sasuke asked reasonably.

Hendak pondered for a moment.

"If I kill Lehtinan I can take over this place, then they can all work for me and stay here until they can afford their own houses."

Sasuke nodded. It sounded fair to him. Sakura went about unlocking all the cells, saving Hendak for last. Once everyone was free, Hendak and the ninja all went to find Lehtinan, this time not bothering to hide the fact they were coming through a 'Staff Only' door. All the nobles fled, and the announcer left too. The bouncer stayed put, but Hendak took care of him in a heartbeat. They made their way into the bar and straight up to Lehtinan.

"B…but you said you enjoyed such entertainment!" He squealed.

"Here's a tip." Sakura said, motioning for her friends to return to their normal appearances, which they did with great pleasure. "Just because someone _says_ something, doesn't make it true. My friends told me all about how you reacted when Naruto here asked about illegal activities. Now you're going to pay for what you've done to these poor people!"

Hendak took this as his cue, and stabbed Lehtinan repeatedly until he was sure the crooked owner was dead. Sakura and her team didn't join in. When Lehtinan was definitely not getting up again, Hendak turned and thanked them, then he talked to Bernard who thought it was "'Bout time someone killed that stupid twat". He welcomed Hendak as the new owner, and all the slaves were given rooms to stay in and food to eat.

" I want to thank you all. I'm really grateful for you freeing us. You're entitled to discounts whenever you come here from now on." He thanked the group.

"That's very generous of you. Arigatou." Tenten replied for them all, bowing.

"I hate to be the one to bring bad news, but the slave trade isn't over." He sighed.

Tenten stood up straight, her brow furrowed.

"What do you mean?" Hinata piped up.

"The man in charge of the whole slave trade is Captain Haegan. He's inside the beached ship. I know how to get there, but it'll be dangerous with just five of you."

"Thank you Hendak, we will get on that, but first we have promised someone else we will help rescue her home, and we want to recruit one more person before we take on any other missions." Sakura stated. Hendak nodded.

"Actually, it'll be better if you put this off for a bit. After our little 'outbreak', the place will probably tighten security and guards will be posted everywhere. If you take care of some other business first, it'll give them chance to get over their paranoia and then it'll be easier for you to overcome Haegan."

After a few farewells and thank you's, Sakura and her friends headed for the gates of Konoha. There, they were shocked by how corrupt the place was. People were bribing their way into the village and the guards were allowing it. Sasuke seemed especially annoyed.

"If the Konoha Shinobi knew what was going on here they'd be furious!" He clenched his fist and ground his teeth.

"It wouldn't stop corruption." Sakura tried to calm him. "Lots of people are corrupt. I'm sure the Konoha Shinobi are doing all they can, and you can help, but for now let's focus on the mission at hand."

Sasuke nodded reluctantly, and unclenched his fists. His body relaxed and he calmly continued walking. They didn't walk for long though, because they soon came across a problem that Sakura just couldn't ignore. A man calling himself Hanj was trying to bully protection money from a travelling merchant. She was not going to put up with _that_.

"Excuse me sir." She said coldly. "I hope you realise that what you're doing is a criminal offence and punishable by law."

Hanj laughed. "Yeah I know. What're _you_ going to do about it little girly? Huh? You going to hide behind your two little boyfriends? Get lost before I kill the lot of you. Just run and hide behind your weak little friends."

"No." She replied calmly. "I'm going to call the guards and other authorities to cart you off to prison. I'm sure _they_ won't appreciate your violence in the streets."

Hanj glanced at the guards, who were all big muscled ninjas with large spears. He gulped and backed down, running away as fast as his legs would take him.

"Arigatou!" The merchant thanked them breathlessly. "I'll offer you a discount on my wares, but I'm leaving straight after so please hurry."

"Do you have any kunai and healing herbs or potions?" She asked.

"Yes. Here." He handed them half of his stock.

Sakura paid and the merchant left. After sharing out the kunai and medicines equally, the ninja team left too, using the map to locate Tayuya's keep. It wasn't far and Sasuke guessed it would take them about 8 hours. Agreeing that they could make it before nightfall, the group travelled through the forest, jumping through the trees in, what they hoped was, the right direction. Sure enough, 8 hours later, a large building came into sight. It was like a small castle, with many turrets and the only entrance being through the main gates just in front of the courtyard. Although there was no moat, there was a drawbridge on the gate, so that the people inside could choose whether to let the visitors in or not. At the moment the drawbridge was up and there was no way into the keep.

"Look." Sasuke pointed to a small camp to the left of the keep. It was made of one medium sized tent and one small tent, a rack holding weapons, a wooden watchtower and a simple wooden fence all around it.

"It's made very badly. It's as if it's been put up quickly as a last minute decision. It looks like a temporary fort." Sakura observed.

"Not only that but look at what's inside it." Sasuke said.

"Humans." Hinata whispered.

"Right. Tayuya said the keep had been overrun by trolls and goblins and a guy called Sakon was holding it captive. If there's a human fort outside, that could be the family's lookout point." He considered.

"In other words, they watch the keep and report any changes to the troops in the surrounding area, in the hopes that Sakon will slip up and give them the chance to take back the place." Tenten summarised.

"Possibly." Sakura said. "It might not be."

"I think we should go down and talk to them. If they're human they aren't likely to be on Sakon's side." Naruto interjected.

"I agree." Tenten nodded.

"Naruto-kun's right. We should speak with them." Hinata chipped in.

"So it's decided then. Let's go." Sakura muttered and moved off, the others close behind.

They didn't want to get spotted by any lookouts that might be inside the keep, so they ran as fast as they could to the small fort. They didn't stop until they were inside, much to the shock of the captain in charge.

"I'm Captain Arat. How can I assist you?" He asked, staring at them with wide eyes.

"Well the thing is, we're here to assist _you_." Naruto grinned.

"Providing you're working for Tayuya's family." Sakura added, glaring at Naruto for the slip up.

"Oh, you're the ninjas Lady Tayuya spoke of." Arat sounded surprised. "I wasn't expecting you for another day or two."

"We got away early." Tenten waved it off. "What's the situation?"

"Well, as you can see my soldiers and I have been driven out of the keep. Lady Tayuya's father is being held captive by a creature named Sakon. We have tried to get in, but each time we get driven back to the palisade, this flat bit of land around the keep that we're on." He added at Naruto's confused look. "They've shut the main entrance, but there is a secret passage into the keep just to the north of where we are. Lady Tayuya used it often when she wanted to avoid her lessons."

Sakura giggled, that sounded like Ino whenever she didn't want to study, back home in Candlekeep. Arat cast her a confused look, but went back to his briefing.

"There are trolls all over the place, you'll need a fire jutsu or some acid to kill them." He handed them several pots of acid. "Dip your kunai in or pour the acid on your sword and that will do the trick. You'll need to come up with your own fire jutsu's though."

Sakura nodded, but looked worried. She didn't know any fire jutsu's, neither did Tenten or Naruto and she was pretty sure Hinata didn't know any. As for Sasuke…

"Don't worry. My clan specialises in fire jutsu's." Sasuke informed her.

She swore he read her mind, but didn't say anything, choosing to bow to Captain Arat and then taking her leave. The others followed suit, and headed for the rock face just north of the fort. Naruto squinted for the door and Tenten stood waiting patiently, as Hinata used her Byakuugan, Sasuke used his Sharingan and Sakura searched for the door.

"Here it is!" She called.

She could see it quite clearly against the rock face, and so could Sasuke and Hinata, although they saw nothing but rock whenever they de-activated their bloodlines. Together they pulled the door open and stepped inside. They found themselves in a storeroom, so they all checked through the barrels and found some more acid, which would no doubt come in handy. Sakura looked over her shoulder at her team-mates and grinned. They all grinned/smiled/smirked back and she turned her attention to the door in front of her.

'_Time to do a bit of spring cleaning.'_ She thought to herself.

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Me: Woo! Just under 13 pages long in word. Hope that makes up for such a long wait, I really am sorry about that!

_Sasuke: zzzz_

_**Sakura: zzzz**_

**Inner Me: zzzz**

Me: …They're all asleep? Stupid people, leaving me to write this on my own! Since there's no one else to say it…review please!


	7. Springcleaning Tayuya's Keep

It took forever to come out, I know! I was at a sleepover…and it lasted almost a week…Okay, okay! I'm sorry, I don't see my friend very often, which is why I spent almost a week at her house. That's my excuse for this being so late and it was worth it. Well, maybe not for you guys, but it was for me!  On with the story!

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire**_

**Chapter 7**

**Spring-Cleaning – Tayuya's Keep**

Sakura cleaned the blood off her sword as yet another troll lay dead at her feet.

"This isn't getting us anywhere." Sasuke sighed. "We've only entered the hallway and already we've run into 5 trolls and 6 goblins. There has to be a better way to do this."

"Well, when you think of one be sure to let us know." She said cheerily. "In the meantime, let's just carry on and hope for the best. The place will be cleared out eventually, so it's best to just keep going. As you said, we're only in the hallway, don't complain yet."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, but said nothing as the group continued on down the hall.

"If we really are going to clear this place out, we're going to have to enter every room." Tenten pointed out.

"Aww man. That's going to take forever!" Naruto yelled.

"But think of all the bad guys you can fight Naruto-kun." Hinata piped up.

"Yeah. That's a good thought." He grinned.

Sakura couldn't keep from smirking.

'_She already knows how to handle him. Way to go Hinata.'_ She giggled to herself.

Turning to the left, she opened the door. Tenten was right. If they wanted to clear the keep out, they'd have to visit _every_ room. Sakura sighed. It was tedious, but at least they were getting paid. She looked around the room she'd just entered. It was the armoury and they weren't alone, a man was stood in the middle of the floor, holding a long copper pipe in front of him.

"Who're you?!" He demanded.

"We were sent here to help tidy this place up a bit. My name is Sakura. You are…?"

"Daleson." He replied, lowering the pipe and eyeing them warily.

"It's good to see you're alive Daleson." She smiled, letting her sword arm dangle by her side. "We were afraid they might have killed everyone. Thank goodness we were wrong."

"Why _are_ you still alive?" Sasuke asked suspiciously.

Sakura nudged him sharply. "Sasuke! What a thing to say!" She turned back to Daleson. "You'll have to forgive him. He's just full of scepticism."

The Uchiha glared at her, but kept his mouth shut. Daleson allowed himself to relax and even smiled.

"He's right actually. You can't be too careful around here. To answer the question…well, I'm the cook of the keep. The trolls used some digger creatures to invade this place and they ordered me to cook the things some food. I had to use the guard dogs from the kennels because they'll only eat dog-meat apparently. After that they let me go, but they won't let me out of the keep. I've been hiding here for ages, but so far no one's come for me…apart from you guys that is."

She pondered what she had heard. _'Digging creatures that only eat dog-meat? That sounds like umber hulks.'_ Sakura tried to picture an umber hulk, it had been a while since she'd seen one. If those things were still here, they'd need some special tactics. If she remembered correctly, umber hulks were about 6 foot tall, with large mandibles like a spider and steely claws. Their body was like a large, resilient shell, and provided natural armour. They had four eyes and if you looked into them you could become confused and not remember who was friend and who was foe. If Daleson was telling the truth and Sakura had guessed correctly, the group would need some sort of protection from confusion. Hopefully, someone would have a mind-protection jutsu. It used to be Ino's job to perform that jutsu, but since she wasn't around…someone else would have to perform it. She snapped out of her thoughts. She could worry about that later.

"Daleson, go into the hall and to the right. The first door you come to leads to a secret door in the wall. Go through and you'll be outside. There's a fort of wood slightly to the south. They'll look after you." She gave him his instructions and he left.

Sighing, Sakura rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"Who here can perform a mind-protection jutsu?"

"A…ano…Sakura-chan. I can." The pearly-eyed Hinata chipped in.

"Oh good. We have nothing to worry about then." Haruno smiled.

Without a word of explanation, she turned and left the room, signifying that Hinata shouldn't perform the jutsu yet. Continuing on down the hall there were two large double doors on the group's right hand side. There was a lot of squealing and growling coming from the room. There was also a lot of shuffling. Keeping her drawn sword in front of her, Sakura kicked the door open to find, what she assumed to be, the main hall, with 4 large tables and one long one at the head. In between the tables, about 25 trolls were wandering, and all heads turned to Sakura and her group the minute the door opened. For a moment, neither party moved, each waiting for the other to strike first. The trolls were the more impatient ones however, and they soon charged. In turn, a cry escaped from Sakura's lips and she too ran headlong into battle, swinging her sword in the general direction of the trolls. The two groups collided headfirst and clanging resounded throughout the room as swords shattered bones and fists punched guts. Sakura made sure to pour acid on every single troll she knocked to the floor and she could hear "Katon: Gokakyuu no jutsu!" from a distance, but it all seemed far away. It was always like that in battle. Sure, she kept an eye on her team mates, but mostly she focused on killing as many of the troll buggers as she could.

10 minutes later, the hall was full of small patches of acid on the floor, and there wasn't a troll in sight. Sakura tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and turned, grinning, to Naruto.

"That took us longer than I expected Naruto. I do believe you're losing your touch."

Naruto gave her a grin of his own. "I do my best Sakura-chan, but I _have_ been stuck with Orochimaru for goodness knows how long."

Sakura chuckled lightly, and then checked over her team. No one seemed to be too injured, a bruise or two, a minor cut, slightly winded, that was the extent of the injuries. Nothing that needed serious healing, so she chose to leave them as they were. No point in wasting chakra when there was nothing life threatening was there? Going back through the double doors, the ninjas continued back down the hall, taking a sharp right and then another, with a door to the left. Sakura motioned for Tenten to open it, which she did in a similar fashion to Sakura, kicking it open and holding her sword in front of her. Seeing no one inside, the brown-haired kunoichi nodded to her emerald-eyed team mate that the coast was clear. Sakura nodded back and went in, followed by Sasuke and Hinata who had activated their bloodlines. The three searched for traps but found nothing. Sasuke went into a little side-room to have a look, while the others went through the chests in the tiny room. There were 6 beds crammed into the small space, so Sakura guessed they were in the servants' quarters.

"Find anything?" Sakura asked them all.

Naruto had found a few coins, Tenten some kunai and Hinata more acid. Sakura herself had found some shuriken.

"Sasuke? Did you find anything?" Tenten called.

Sasuke came out looking disgusted, but he nodded.

"It's a bathroom in there. Someone's hidden something in the toilet."

"In the cistern you mean?" Sakura enquired.

"What's a cistern?" Naruto looked bewildered.

"The box bit on the back of the toilet where the handle is Naruto-kun." Hinata whispered to him. He flashed her a grateful smile, causing her to blush.

Sakura shook her head and smirked knowingly at Tenten, who smirked back, but she had a rather wistful look on her face. Turning to Sasuke, the pink-haired kunoichi gave him a confused look.

"Sasuke. Why haven't you gotten the 'whatever it is' out of the cistern?"

Sasuke frowned slightly. "It's not in the cistern."

"But you said it was in the toilet."

"It is, but not the cistern."

Then she clicked what he meant. It was in the bowl. Sakura cringed. "That's disgusting."

Sasuke nodded his agreement, but Naruto was grinning ear to ear.

"Scared to get your hands dirty Sasuke?" He teased.

"Shut up dobe." Was the reply, although it was more of a growl.

"Aww, poor little Sasuke doesn't want to do a simple thing like put his hand in a toilet." Naruto continued jeering. Sasuke shot him a glare.

"I said shut up."

"Poor little diddums."

Giving the blonde the ultimate death glare, the Uchiha whirled around and stalked back into the bathroom, coming out a few seconds later with a sapphire in his hand and a thoroughly irritated look on his face. He forced the gem into Naruto's hand and pointedly turned his back to him.

"Hn."

Our Uzumaki man had kept a straight face up until that point, but the minute Sasuke's back was turned, Naruto screwed up his face in a disgusted way and shoved the sapphire at Tenten, who rolled her eyes and put it in her backpack, though not before cleaning it a bit with one of the bed spreads.

A few seconds later, the group found themselves out of the servants' quarters, down the hall, out of the front door and in the courtyard. Over to the right were some dog kennels, or rather what was left of them. There were also a few dogs running around, but Sakura had plans for them. In the centre of the courtyard, though it hadn't seen them yet, was an Otyugh, a large pink and blue creature with no eyes, just a large mouth full of sharp teeth on a body. It had two feet, no legs, a long poisonous tail and two tentacles for arms. Otyughs were known for thriving in heaps of dung and decay, eating carrion (dead creatures) and if they bit you, chances were you would become diseased, slowly weakening you until death came unless cured by a medic. All in all, they were vile, filthy creatures that stank of shit and dead meat. They also tended to drool, which was pretty repulsive, but imagine drool just slathering down your chin in torrents. Just to the left of the Otyugh was the only thing still in tact, a wishing well. Such a simple and childish thing left standing gave Sakura hope. It was like saying wishes don't die, so she was determined not to let her wish die by getting herself killed.

"Hinata." She whispered, making sure not to attract the attention of the great slobbering beast in front of them.

"Yes?"

"Can you charm those dogs in some way?"

"No Sakura. I don't know any jutsus like that."

"Then watch and learn." Sakura turned her attention to the dogs.

She had learned this jutsu from the books back home in Candlekeep, practising it frequently on the animals around the town until she had perfected it. Again, this jutsu was more Ino's department, but Sakura had no other choice.

"Doobutsu miryoku no jutsu! (1)" She cried, bringing the dogs completely under her control.

'_Koroshimasu. (2)' _She silently commanded them. _'Yamete. (3) Koroshimasu.'_

Obediently, the dogs whirled around and charged towards the Otyugh.

"But they'll never be able to kill it!" Tenten shouted.

"They're not supposed to. They're the distraction, now move!" She called back, already sneaking behind the Otyugh and drawing her sword.

The others followed suit without another word, positioning themselves in a circle around the beast. Sakura made a 'stop' motion with her hands, causing them all to halt their advance inwards. None of them moved until they were given the signal to do so, which didn't come until after all four of the brave dogs were slain. (A.N. Good thing Kiba wasn't there. Poor puppies.) Once they had all been killed, Sakura began closing in on the Otyugh, dodging its flailing tail when required. Taking this as the signal to move, they all continued to trap the Otyugh, which seemed to sense danger and began trying to swat them with its tentacles. No one had any problems dodging the creature's clumsy movements. It was slow, and they had ninja training and chakra at their disposal.

Sakura was the first to reach it, and captured its attention by slashing its back, leaving a deep and bleeding wound just above its tail. This left the tail practically useless, because it hurt to move, so the foul beast wouldn't try to use it until it was desperate. She jumped back straight after hitting it, and good thing she did too, because the monster whirled around and tried to slap her with a large, slimy tentacle. Naruto, who was opposite Sakura, was very familiar with this technique, so the moment the Otyugh turned its back, he ran up to it and took a swing, cleaving off the tail completely. He too jumped back straight after doing the damage, and the large beast turned on him.

Now it was Tenten's turn. She couldn't run up to the brute like the other two had. She was at the side and it might sense her. Instead, she took out her almighty scroll of weapons (A.N. I don't know what its really called, sorry) and hurled a barrage of various pointy, and might I say, bloody well sharp objects at it, piercing the tentacles and other areas so deep, that each cut oozed its own fountain of blood. The Otyugh was turning from a pulsing pink to a stained, dirty red. By this point, Sasuke and Hinata had caught on to what was happening, so as the hulk of a being faced off against her, Hinata took her turn, using her gentle fist technique to seal off some vital points in its body, before flipping backwards herself. Sasuke had taken this opportunity to launch himself into the air, point his sword directly downwards and stab straight down the centre of the Otyugh, entering through the back and exiting through the stomach. As it keeled over to one side, Sasuke swiftly pulled out the sword, back-flipping off its body with all the grace of a trapeze artist.

This was a rather long way of killing a creature like an Otyugh, normally, Sakura would have just charged it. However, charging it meant running the risk of getting slapped, poisoned or diseased, and she needed her chakra for the battle with Sakon, she couldn't waste it now. Killing the thing this way almost guaranteed no casualties and that was what she wanted. Everyone was cleaning blood off themselves, (Hinata and Sasuke kept throwing worried glances her way every time she went near someone still covered in the stuff) except Naruto. He was gazing mournfully at the bodies of the dogs.

"Why Sakura-chan?" He mumbled.

"Maybe she wanted to spill pointless blood." Sasuke suggested, standing next to him. "She _is_ an Ita-spawn after all."

The blonde shook his head and just continued to stare at the dogs. Someone clapped them both on the back and they turned in surprise. Sakura was stood behind them smiling sadly.

"Umber hulks only eat dog-meat Naruto. We need the meat to distract those things. Maybe we can trap them and avoid having to fight. I wouldn't have sent those dogs to their deaths without a reason." Then to Sasuke. "Have a little more faith in me. I'm not some bloodthirsty vampire that spills blood just for the pleasure of it. If that were the case, all my friends would be dead by now." With that, she made her way towards the dogs, skinned them quickly and efficiently and took the meat, burying what was left and leaving a large rock at the head of the 'graves' in their memory.

"You seem well practised in skinning creatures." The Uchiha observed.

Sakura gave him a long, steady look. Not once did she break eye contact and she told him straight.

"You have to learn how to skin things if you need to eat when travelling. We've done that a few times in the past and there are creatures called 'Skin Dancers' which only die if you knock them out, skin them and then stab them. They're pretty hard to kill because they regenerate fast, so you have to be quick at skinning them, otherwise they jump back up and try to throttle you."

"Skin Dancers?" Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow perfectly.

"Creatures that skin other people and wear the skin themselves." She allowed herself a small shudder of horror before heading back towards the group, signalling the end of the matter.

He shrugged. It sounded stupid to him. Skin Dancers. Yeah right, like they exist. He made a mental note to 'ask the dobe' and then followed his female team mate back to the main group. Sakura asked Hinata and Tenten to run up some stairs to the left of the wishing well and follow the walkway round until they reached the drawbridge.

"There should be a wheel just above it." She told them. "If you turn it, the drawbridge will open, and then Captain Cernick should be able to get in."

"Who's Cernick?" Tenten inquired.

"Captain Arat told me he's the one in charge of storming the keep and helping clear it out of monsters. He hasn't got many troops, but his men can kill any guard trolls that come running. Apparently, they've set up an alarm that goes off whenever the drawbridge is opened. His men will deal with whoever comes running, which means the keep should be a lot emptier…"

"So we can search it a lot easier…right Sakura-chan?" Hinata asked.

"You got it Hinata-chan." She gave the girl a grin.

The two made their way up the stairs as told, while the rest of the group cleared the courtyard of bodies and debris so the soldiers wouldn't trip over anything. Then, they hid in the shadows by the door. Tenten called to Cernick, who was in a camp a little ways off, and together, she and Hinata grunted and shoved until finally the wheel gave in and the drawbridge fell. Then, sticking to the shadows they fled back to the door, sneaking in with the rest of the ninjas while trolls rushed out and clashed neck and neck, fist to fist, head to head with the soldiers pouring in from the opposite direction. While outside the keep was carnage, inside, all was quiet. They headed back up the corridor, taking a right into a fairly large kitchen. Sakura put the dog-meat she had collected onto the oven and began making a stew, ready to trap any Umber hulks that might appear later on in their journey…

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(1) Doobutsu miryoku no jutsu: Animal charm jutsu (Literally translated)

(2) Koroshimasu: Kill/slay.

(3) Yamete: Stop it.

I got these translations from a Japanese/English online dictionary. If they're wrong or I've said them in the wrong order or some other way that makes no sense, please forgive me. I've literally had to guess how to use them.

Me: FINALLY! After almost two weeks it's posted! I'm honestly so sorry for the long wait. The first week I had a sleepover (see the top) and this week I'm back at school and I've had essays and homework and it's only Wednesday! T-T Also, I'm disappointed with myself. This is shorter than my other chapters, being only 9 and a bit pages long. Gomen nasaii but I'm really getting sleepy and my fingers are hurting. Normally, I type a chapter up over a few days, but this time I've typed it all up in one night and I didn't want to make you guys wait any longer for it, so I've stopped early.

**Inner Me: Where. Is. She.**

Me: Who?

**Inner Me: avatardnumber64!**

Me: Why do you want to know?

**Inner Me: She whacked me awake!**

Me: Yeah I know. Thanks Jenn-chan!

_Sasuke: Dude! Do you know how late it is?_

Me: Yes I do thank you, now quite whining! You've been asleep for the past two chapters!.

_**Sakura: If I say it can we go back to sleep?**_

Me: Yes.

_**Sakura: Review please.**_

Me: Guess what!

_**Sakura: -Tiredly- What?**_

Me: I lied. –Forces coffee down their throats to wake them up-


	8. Secret cellars Tayuya’s keep upper floor

I'm alive! No I am not dead! It took ages, I know, I know. You'll just have to be patient with me. School does not like giving us free time in the evenings. -Sighs-

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire**_

**Chapter 8**

**Secret Cellars – Tayuya's Keep Upper Floor**

Sakura pulled the pot out of the stove, having finally finished cooking the dog-meat stew. It really did smell disgusting and she pitied the brave creatures she'd had to use to make it, but it was their only chance of capturing the umber hulks and not putting themselves at too much risk. Sighing, she carefully put the pot (lid on tightly) into her bag and marched out to join the rest of her team, who had left as the first tell tale signs of the sickening smell had wafted from the oven. Giving all her friends a sweet smile, she led them upstairs.

"Ne, ne, Sakura-chan. I thought Tayuya's father was being held in the cellar." Naruto called out, looking slightly confused.

"He is." She replied chirpily.

"Then why are we heading upstairs?" Sasuke asked irritated.

"Have we visited every room on this floor?" Sakura asked out of the blue.

"Yes but what has that got to do with…?" Naruto began.

"And have you seen any stairs leading downwards?" She continued, not waiting for the rest of the blonde ninja's question.

"No…" He replied, beginning to see where she was going with this.

"Then that suggests the stairs down must be on the upper floor. That's the way all keeps are designed, so that visitors can't get to the cellar and important stock without permission to go upstairs. Since only trusted people are given permission to go upstairs, it stops would-be-thieves from making too much trouble." She concluded.

Naruto nodded, but didn't say anything, so Sakura once again headed up the stairs. The others followed and after a few minutes they reached the landing of the upper floor. Glancing around the room, she decided there were no traps and walked calmly into the centre of the room taking a good look around to see what their options were. There were two doors, one to the North and one to the South, right next to the stairs. Sakura put her ear to the North door. Hearing nothing, she turned around and put her ear next to the South door. There were rustling noises and heavy breathing coming from beyond.

"This way." She told her teammates.

"How can you tell?" Tenten inquired, though she knew why, it was really for Hinata and Sasuke's benefit.

"Simple." She gave a bright smile. "The North door was silent. If the stairs to the cellar were that way, they would have placed guards, which would have made noise, but since I can't hear anything there must be no guards. This door on the other hand…" She tapped the door. "…Has noises and breathing. It's much more likely to have what we're looking for."

Turning around, she opened the door to reveal a short corridor that turned sharply right. They followed this round only to stop almost immediately. There were two choices. A door on the North wall and a door on the West wall. Sakura repeated her earlier test. The North door was, again, silent, but the West door had breathing and footsteps coming from inside, this time much louder than before. Pointing to the West door, which led to the study according to the sign on it, she motioned for them all to move in before slamming her side against it and slashing with her sword. She had killed many enemies who had hidden just behind doors in this manner, and the unfortunate troll was no exception.

"Ice troll." Sasuke commented. "It can only be killed with fire." Everyone looked at him.

Within a second, the body was burning and the ninjas were engaged in yet another battle, this time with a Yuan-ti mage. Yuan-ti were vicious creatures, their bodies snake-like but they slithered in an upright position, with human looking arms. Because of their bodies, they couldn't wear armour, but the more dangerous ones were known as mages and could perform jutsus. This particular Yuan-ti mage seemed quite familiar with a lot of jutsus. He couldn't wear armour, but his stoneskin jutsu seemed to work just as well.

"Ishi-hada no jutsu! (1)" He rasped, the jutsu taking effect and covering him in stone. He could still move, it was merely protecting him.

Sakura was not having any of this. This thing was going down right now. She made the hand seals and hit the beast on the shoulder, crying out "Koi! (2)" Then using her free hand (she somehow managed to make the seals while holding her sword) she slashed. At that moment however, the Yuan-ti fell back slightly from her dispelling attack, so the sword only skimmed him. The momentum was enough however, to send the two skidding in opposite directions. Sakura took this opportunity to make more hand seals, but the Yuan-ti had the same idea. Sasuke seemed to realise that now was a good time to intervene, and he got in between the two, making his own hand seals lightning fast.

"Toraeru tsuru kusa no jutsu! (3)" He shouted, placing one hand on the floor. Vines shot out from the cracks in the floor trapping the monster's hands and holding them still. Then he side-stepped so his pink-haired teammate would have a clear shot. She took full advantage of this, stepping a little closer so she couldn't possibly miss.

"Shi dageki no jutsu. (4)" She whispered, placing one finger on the squirming creature's forehead.

Its eyes rolled upwards, its tongue lolled out of its mouth and when Sasuke released his own jutsu it fell to the floor in a lifeless heap. Satisfied that it was dead, they all began looking around the room for anything they could use. They picked up some more kunai, a few more gold pieces and a small, simple key, which Sakura insisted they hold on to. Going to the North door, she heard moans.

"I don't know if this is the right way. There's noise coming from both doors, so I think we should check this one out first." She reasoned.

Everyone shrugged, not doubting her leadership. They entered a corridor that seemed to lead to a dead end, but Sakura noticed a hidden door in the wall straight to their left. She opened it, much to the surprise of Naruto when the door appeared from 'nowhere', and examined the tiny room. It was empty and there seemed to be nothing of interest, not even a chest or a barrel to check. In fact, the only thing in the room that caught Sakura's attention, was the wooden door to the left of the one they had just entered. It seemed the moans were coming from in there. She opened the door, sword aloft, but there was no one in there apart from a man gripping the table in the centre of the room.

"Sir. Are you alright?" She called out to him.

He stumbled over to them, groaning and clutching his stomach.

"Help…me." He begged, sounding as though sandpaper had been shoved down his throat. "Name's…Glacius…charmed…help…" He grabbed at her clothes in a desperate plea for help, before shoving her roughly back and picking up a candlestick on the table.

Naruto went forward to strike, but Sakura held him back.

"No Naruto. He's been charmed!" She grunted with the effort of keeping the loudmouth away from Glacius.

"How do we un-charm him?" Tenten asked, dodging the candlestick thrown at her.

"I don't know! Maybe…casting one of our own charms upon him and then releasing it will work?" The pink-haired girl replied. "I would do it, but I'm a bit tied up!"

Hinata came forward and grabbed Naruto, surprisingly roughly by his shirt, holding him back in Sakura's place. "Hurry Sakura-chan" She murmured.

The jade-eyed kunoichi wasted no time in performing hand seals. She had never tried a human charm jutsu before, but she had read about it back home, and with her perfect chakra control it was worth a try.

"Ninjen atama miryoku no jutsu. (5)" She yelled, her palms facing Glacius.

Everyone was silent for a few moments. Even Naruto had stopped struggling and was merely watching. Glacius stood frozen to the spot, his eyes glazed, swaying slightly. Sakura gulped, wondering if it had worked or if she had just overloaded his mind so much that his brain couldn't comprehend it all. If that was the case it would be shutting down and he was dying. She decided to test whether her charm had worked.

'_Oku. (6)'_ She mentally commanded him. To her relief and delight, he did as he was told, putting down the toasting fork he had picked up. Happy now that she had successfully charmed him, it was time to see if releasing the jutsu would free him from his other charm.

"Hanasu. (7)" She said calmly.

He swayed again and his eyes glazed over once more, then his focus sharpened and he looked straight to Sakura.

"Thank you." He bowed. She sighed, so relieved that her theory had worked. "I am Glacius, Tayuya's uncle. No doubt you've come in search of her father. He's down in the cellar. Go back into the study and leave through the Western door. Ignore the first door on the right, you want the second one on the right. That's Tayuya's aunt's room. There's a secret door in there that leads to a chapel if you go up the steps and to the stairs leading to the cellar if you follow it through to the end. I'm sorry, I can't be of more help."

The pink-haired kunoichi smiled and waved him off, telling him to get out while he could and thanking him for his advice. Sasuke watched her in fascination.

'_Odd.'_ He thought to himself. _'She's an Ita-spawn, yet she avoids shedding blood whenever she can. She can hear noises through doors that the rest of us can't. She can see in the dark as well as she can in the day and she can see secret doors. There's definitely something different about her.'_

He supposed she must be putting up a front to convince him he was wrong about her and vowed to watch her closely. If there was any sign of trouble, he would contact the rest of the Konoha Shinobi and they would apprehend her, but for the minute everything seemed fine. This bewildered him as he had followed many Ita-spawn and joined their groups like he had done Sakura's, but none of them had acted like her. He would have to keep tabs on her constantly, just in case. He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard the voice of the person he'd been thinking about.

"Come _on_ Sasuke. We have to hurry and help Tayuya's father before it's too late!" There was urgency in her voice.

They had spent a long time combing the keep and every second lost was precious, and could bring Tayuya's father one step closer to death. Sakura had seen it many times before, though not when she was leading a group. She certainly didn't want to see it again. The time for spring-cleaning was finished, now that Captain Cernick was taking care of that. They had to focus on getting to the cellar. Heading back to the study, Sakura went through the Western door, followed the corridor right, ignored the first door and went through the second, which was on her right, unlocking it with the key they had found earlier.

Inside, there was a woman who stood upright and proud. She was wearing magnificent clothes in rich colours and fine silks. Sakura glanced down at her own clothes which were made of simple cotton, in a bright red, (so no one would notice if she bled, she didn't want to be a burden) and it had patches of dirt on it. She had a few cuts on her face and no doubt a few bruises too. It couldn't be helped, she wasn't a noble like the woman and this was the price of being a ninja. Sighing, she held out her hand and tried to smile and be pleasant. The woman was having none of it.

"I am Azarni (8). _Lady_ Azarni to you commoners. It's about time you came and let me out." She stared down her nose at them. "So dirty. Ugh. Be sure not to touch me. I shall make my own way out thank you. I don't wish to spend any more time than necessary with you grubby little peasants." With that she was out of the door and their sight.

Sakura had turned pink enough to match her hair, hand still outstretched, she seemed to be in a state of shock. Naruto was shaking with anger, Tenten's face was scrunched up in obvious disapproval, and Hinata was twiddling her fingers, quite upset. Sasuke's face was calm but his eyes flashed dangerously. Naruto was the first to break.

"That **bitch**!" He screeched causing the timid girl next to him to jump. "We come in here, risk our butts for her and she treats us like dirt! Wait 'til I give her a piece of my mind!" He made to storm after her, but Sakura, still frozen, called to him.

"Naruto. Stop. We need to focus."

The blonde turned sulkily, but went up to his teammate and looked closely at her face. He gave her an adorably confused face and she couldn't help but giggle.

"I'm sorry Naruto. I forgot how ungrateful people can be. It came as a bit of a shock." Shaking her head she turned to the Eastern wall. "There." She pointed to the wall where she could quite clearly see the door.

Sasuke and Hinata activated their bloodlines and also located the door. Together, the three pulled it open, and just as Glacius had said, to the left there were some stairs leading up to an empty hall, the chapel. Straight ahead were the cellar stairs. Not wanting to waste anymore time, Sakura practically dived for them, the others hurrying after her. Taking them two at a time meant they reached the bottom fairly quickly. Scouting out the area, she disarmed a trapped chest and pulled out a few coins. The room was large, but fairly empty with just one door and the stairs they had come down. Opening the door revealed another stock room and three trolls. The trolls were dead in minutes and Sakura had her ear glued to the door. Pulling away when she heard all she needed to she faced her friends.

"It's umber hulks alright. No doubt about it. Hinata, this is your moment to shine." She smiled at the young girl. "If you could perform that mind protection jutsu now?"

The shy girl gave her a soft smile and nodded, pulling everyone in close. After a few hand seals she whispered, "Atama booei no jutsu. (9)" Everyone glowed for a second and then returned to normal.

"Arigatou Hinata. Now, who's fast?"

"Me." Sasuke chipped in.

"Perfect. Take this dog-meat and put it in a little side room in the corridor to your right. Try not to let them see you. Once you've put it down, take off the lid, run round to the other corridor exit, it's in a u-shape, and shut both doors. That way we don't have to fight them. Keep to the shadows when you can."

"How do you know all this just by listening?"

"I could hear the footsteps and determine whereabouts they were, plus, I peeked through the keyhole and saw the two doors. Put two and two together and you get the conclusion I got."

He nodded, took the meat, and vanished, his speed was that fast. Sakura listened at the door, nodding as she heard Sasuke place the pot down and lift the lid. She heard the umber hulks lumber towards the meat, the Uchiha's soft fast steps, so quick it was more like a soft hum, run round the corridor, the sure slam of a door and then another slam as the other door closed. Pulling away she opened the door and gave him a big grin.

"Nicely done. I was struggling to hear whereabouts you were, you were that quiet."

Sasuke gave her a long look, but nodded.

"Something wrong?" She asked, concerned.

"You shouldn't be able to hear _normal_ footsteps from that far away, let alone soft footsteps. Your hearing is incredible, like an elf's." He replied.

She gave a bright, sunny laugh. "Well, my ears actually _look_ like elf ears too. Must be all the time I spent with them in my past." She giggled, pulling back her hair so he could see her ears. Sure enough they had a soft, but unmistakable point at the tips.

"Yes, but spending time with them shouldn't influence you that much." He pondered. She shrugged, letting her hair fall back. "Have they always been like that?"

"For as long as I can remember." She smiled. "But we have a job to do, so let's worry about that later."

They all turned to the door on the Eastern wall. Faces set, they slammed the door open.

"Sakon! How dare you defile this home!" Sakura called into the large room. It looked like a vault, but of course it had been ransacked.

Sakon, who looked like an overly large spider with a human head, whirled around to face her. He was alone, all his trolls and guards had been sent to answer the alarm bell for the drawbridge.

She charged at him, sword held high, somewhere behind her Naruto was crying out, "For justice, and butt-kicking!". Sasuke was running by her side, Hinata to her other side. Tenten was a little behind Naruto, pulling out her almighty weapon scroll.

Sakon blinked, seeming a little overwhelmed by the sudden attack, but quickly came back to earth. He jumped high into the air using his eight legs and clung to the ceiling. That didn't last long as Tenten's weapon barrage came flying towards him. He jumped down, kicking Naruto out of his way as he did so. He sent an army of spiders after Hinata, performed an entangle jutsu to trap Sasuke and Naruto and kept Tenten at bay by casting a genjutsu on her. Sakura was basically alone until Sasuke or Naruto got free. She held her sword in front of her and charged the spider/human.

He seemed ready for her this time, using one of his many legs to slam her against a wall. She jumped straight back up and switched tactics, charging again but jumping left at the last minute, cutting off one of his legs. He hissed in pain, but mostly ignored the lost limb. It would grow back. He bent down and (using his human arms) picked her up by her shirt collar, throwing her to the side. She flipped herself over so her feet hit a pillar, and used it to propel herself forward, taking another slash, this time catching his upper back.

Again he was ready for this and grabbed her sword arm as she flew over head. Keeping a tight grip, he slammed her repeatedly into the floor before throwing her over his shoulder, convinced she must be unconscious. He couldn't be more wrong. Sakura was wide-awake and very angry. It took more than a couple of cheap shots to put _her_ down. As she shakily stood up, (A.N. The floor was made of stone, that hurts! T-T) something caught her eye.

It was a foot. She froze, staring at it. The foot was attached to a leg, which disappeared into the shadows. Glancing at the fight, she noticed Sasuke and Naruto had gotten free and were now facing Sakon. She headed for the foot and pulled lightly. A body came sliding out of the corner, face deathly pale. It was Tayuya's father.

The cause of death was obvious, a gash on his chest was deep, leaving a cut on his heart, which wasn't beating. Blood oozed out, covering Sakura's hands and every other surface. His face was one of pure horror, set forever into a grimace, eyes wide and unseeing. He had an arm missing, obviously cut off and a bite mark in his side. The body was still warm, he hadn't died long ago, but he was definitely beyond help. His blood seeped through Sakura's clothes and was pouring out of every wound on his body. She sat there, wide-eyed, just staring at the sticky red liquid all over him, and her.

She knew the voice would be calling her, but as the elves had taught her, she blocked it out completely. She couldn't hear it, so it was only the fact she had heard it before training that she knew it would be trying to talk to her. No. It was not the voice that caused her to freeze so. Sakura's biggest fear was not vampires. It was not spiders, nor was it dead bodies. Her **biggest** fear…was blood. The effect it had on her ever since she was a young child had always terrified her. After the incident with Naruto she just couldn't look at the stuff. It wasn't _all_ blood. She could deal with blood that had been spilt from evil people. It smelled foul to her sensitive Ita-spawn nose and didn't bother her at all. It was blood of the innocent that scared her. The blood that smelled clean and, mostly, pure. It drove her 'Call' wild, and although she could ignore it perfectly, the memories of what she used to see would not leave her. Whenever she was 'Called' she always saw images. Violent, grotesque, horrific images that no person should have to see, especially not a 16-year-old-girl. Even though she didn't see them anymore thanks to the elves, the memory of what she used to see petrified her beyond anything else, partly because it was so evil it could send you insane and partly because her Ita-spawn side enjoyed seeing it.

Pulling away, Sakura saw the blood all over her hands.

'_It's my fault.'_ She thought. _'I didn't hurry…didn't get here soon enough…what have I done?'_ She couldn't contain herself anymore. The room was filled with an ear-piercing scream that made blood curdle, as the person who was creating such a sound must be in terrible agony, dying or terrified out of their mind.

Every head turned towards the sound. A collective gasp was heard from the ninjas, as they saw Sakura, on the floor covered in blood from the waist down, screaming her head off at the body before her. Sakon took this opportunity to go for her.

"Sakura!"

"Sakura-chan!"

"Watch out!"

"Dodge it!"

The cries of her teammates fell on deaf ears. She had stopped wailing, but was paralysed by the sight before her.

"You're mine now!" He cried.

Sakura turned around, her eyes wide. Time seemed to slow as Sakon flew through the air towards her. During this pause, her face turned from horror and shock, to determination and anger. Pure, white-hot anger. Her eyes danced with emerald fire and she shoved her sword into the ground, using it as leverage to aim a super-strength kick at the spider. Suddenly, time sped up and everything happened at once. Sakon was sent flying across the room straight through a wall, making quite the crater.

The pink-haired girl yanked her sword out of the ground and ran towards him. He tried to move, but her eyes held such anger and murderous intent he found it was his turn to be paralysed with fear. He could only watch as she forced her sword roughly through his shoulder, missing his heart by an inch. Sakura pulled out the sword and tried again, not breaking eye contact even for a second, holding him prisoner against a wall with nothing but her hate filled glare. She missed his heart once again, piercing him just below it. She tried one last time, this time catching her mark perfectly. He screamed in pain and was no more.

Sakura stayed there for a few seconds, being held up by the sword only, hair covering her eyes. Then, slowly, the sword came out of the body and she collapsed to the floor, still clinging to the hilt tightly. Her shoulders shook and tears filled her beautiful grass green eyes. She had failed. Her mission was to kill Sakon and take back the keep, but she felt she had failed in the worst possible way. She let out a cry of despair and tears fell from her face, falling onto her hands, washing away the blood and leaving them clean as clean could be.

No one moved. They were unsure what to do for the poor girl as Ino had always been the one to snap her out of these moods. Hinata winced as her friend let out another heart-breaking sob. Naruto patted her gently on the arm and sent her a worried look. She tried to smile, but cringed again as Sakura sniffled. Naruto gave her a comforting hug, which she gladly accepted. Tenten came and joined in too as the cries of the pink-haired girl, who was usually so strong, went through every one of them like nails being scratched down a chalkboard.

Sasuke stayed apart, looking from Sakura to the group huddled up. Sighing, he realised no one else was going to offer her any comfort. He wasn't so good at this, but he really didn't want to stay here, he had to get into the Konoha Shinobi, not hang about mourning people he didn't know. Walking up to the kunoichi he knelt down beside her. The other three watched in interest.

"Sakura."

She gave a small sob to show she was listening.

"Get up. You're acting completely irrational. You didn't even know the guy."

She lifted her head and looked at him. It was the first time they had seen her face since she began her attack on Sakon. Her eyes were swimming in water and she had tear-streaks down her unusually pale face. Her lower lip trembled slightly as she gazed up at him, looking lost like a small child. He sighed, grabbed her arm, wrapped his own around her waist and lifted her to her feet.

"Stand up Sakura." He commanded, a little more softly this time, sensing that being gentle might be more effective.

It worked and she stood alone, swaying slightly, but alone. She watched him, as though unsure what to do next. He picked up her sword and handed it to her after cleaning it. She put it away without looking at it, never once taking her large eyes off him.

"I killed him…" She whispered.

"Of course you killed Sakon, we saw you." Sasuke frowned.

She shook her head. "Tayuya's father. I killed him."

His eyes widened.

"I didn't get here quickly enough…just a few seconds earlier and I could have saved him." She swayed again. "He was still warm when I found him." More tears slipped down her cheeks. "His blood…it was everywhere…all over my hands…all over me…" Shuddering, her body began to sink to the floor again.

Sasuke caught her and stood her back up, holding her at arms length so she wouldn't fall again. He held her gaze and gently grabbed her wrist, lifting it so she could see her hand.

"Look at it Sakura. It's clean. Your tears cleaned the blood off. You've mourned him and avenged him. It's not your fault. Do you understand me?" He put his face closer to hers. "It. Is. Not. Your. Fault. Do I make myself clear?"

She nodded. He returned her nod and let go. She did not sway and light seemed to be returning to her eyes.

"Thank you." She murmured. She turned to the body. Wincing, she went to pick it up, but Sasuke got there first.

"I'll carry it. You're still a little unsteady." He whirled around, satisfied that he could finally get out of here.

They all headed back the way they had come and towards the exit.

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(1) Ishi-hada no jutsu – Quite literally Stone-skin jutsu

(2) Koi - Dispel

(3) Toraeru tsuru kusa no jutsu – Grabbing vines jutsu

(4) Shi dageki no jutsu – Death blow jutsu

(5) Ninjen atama miryoku no jutsu – Human mind charm jutsu

(6) Oku – Place/put down

(7) Hanasu – Release/let go

(8) Azarni – A thistle flower

(9) Atama booei no jutsu – Mind protection jutsu

Me: Right. Well, it took forever but it's finally out! My longest chapter yet, at just under 13 pages. It's making up for how long you all had to wait. Also, I know I went a little crazy with the Japanese, but I have so many jutsus to use and I have to invent them all and a couple of names too. Sorry if I've used any of them wrong. Let me know if you spot an error in the jutsus. Thanks very much!

**Inner Me: LOLOLOLOLOL! HYPEEEEEEEEER! COFFEECOFFEECOFFEECOFFEECOFFEE!**

_Sasuke: -Twitching like mad and eyes whizzing about the room- Coffee. Coffee. Hehe, coffee is good!_

_**Sakura: -Bouncing around- Wooooo coffee!!**_

Me: What have I gotten myself into? Review please!


	9. The aftermath and a full team

Oh my gosh! After 70 days, AKA, 10 weeks, I FINALLY update. I am soooo sorry to all my readers who have been waiting for this. Really I am. This is the worst I've ever done. Hopefully now the holidays are over updates will be faster. Please, please forgive me! -Gets down on knees- I'm sorryyyyyyyyyyyyyy! T-T You all have permission to belt me with rotten tomatoes. I'll introduce the newest member to make up for it, I promise!

Last time (since you've probably all forgotten): Sakura and her team defeated Sakon and found Tayuya's father dead. They headed towards the exit and Tayuya's family…

**_Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire_**

**Chapter 9**

**The Aftermath and a full team – Missions galore!**

They all took a deep breath of fresh air. It had never tasted so sweet, but after the gore and grunge of the cellars it was like Heaven. Only one thing took away the joys of being outside for Sakura. Tayuya's father. Sasuke carried his body with ease, but the pink-haired kunoichi was not looking forward to what Tayuya would say. Grimacing, she headed for the centre of the courtyard, where she could see a shock of pink hair.

"Sasuke, stay behind the others until I've had a chance to explain." She murmured.

Sasuke gave a grunt of acknowledgement and allowed Naruto, Hinata and Tenten to overtake him. Sakura straightened up and went into 'professional mode'. If Tayuya wanted to hurl abuse then she would have to take it. It came with the job.

"Sakura!" The fellow pink-head screeched, racing up to the group. "What happened to Sakon? Did you kill him? Is he gone? What of my father? How is he?"

Sakura held a hand up, stopping the flow of questions.

"Sakon is dead." She began. "I killed him with my sword. He won't be getting back up again. As for your father…" She gulped and gestured towards the group.

The ninjas parted so Sasuke was in Tayuya's direct view. Her father lay in his arms, limp and pale but no longer bleeding. Sakura had done her best to heal him a little so he didn't look so bad when they presented him to the family. Despite her best efforts, there was still a bite mark in his side and she had been unable to make his arm grow back. However, the gash in his chest had been healed and they had washed his face and hands with water, cleaning him slightly, though they hadn't wanted to dishonour him by changing his clothes, which were still covered in blood.

"Daddy?" Tayuya whispered, reaching out and stroking the man's pale, thin face.

She choked out a sob, hand coming up to cover her mouth. A single tear rolled softly down her cheek as she turned to Sakura. Said girl just watched her, a look of sorrow and understanding on her face.

"I'm sorry." She mumbled. "I know how it feels but there was nothing I could do. He was dead when we got there."

"How?" Tayuya asked. "How could you possibly understand?" To Sakura's look of confusion.

"My…guardian…was like a father to me. No. He _was_ my father, more so than my real father anyway. He was killed by my own half-brother. Believe me, I understand more than you realise." She answered.

After a moment of silence, both girls became business-like, determined to shake off the bad mood and be strong. Tayuya took out her purse and handed the kunoichi some notes.

"Your payment." She stated. "After all, your mission was to free the keep and kill Sakon. You tried your best and I'm sure you saved some lives so…as promised." She gave the team a nod.

"What will happen to the keep?" Sakura enquired.

"I…don't know." Came the reluctant answer. "See, Sakon _claimed_ I was promised to him, but I was really promised to another man. He's called Isaea Roenal, so, at a guess, I inherit the keep, but he takes over it, as I'm to marry him."

"You're not happy with this arrangement?" Sasuke chipped in.

"Not really, no." Tayuya informed. "I don't love this guy, but as long as there is no guardian to run the keep…"

"So get a guardian." Naruto shrugged.

"It's not that simple I'm afraid."

"It never is." Tenten sighed.

"The guardian has to be strong, able to defend this place. They have to be responsible to take care of the residents. They have to be clever too, to handle the taxes and the running of the place, not to mention the quarrels of the people who live in this land. Oh, and they have to be likeable, otherwise the people will revolt and they have to be able to think on their feet, as people are always trying to take the keep through law and stuff. Finally, they have to be honest and trustworthy, otherwise, what's the point?" Tayuya ticked off each thing on her fingers.

"Those are difficult qualities to find in a person." Hinata piped in.

"I know." The young girl sighed. "And Isaea will be here any minute. I just haven't the _time_ to find someone, especially not with such short notice. Besides, who do _I_ know with all those qualities? Isaea certainly doesn't fit in, but I don't know anyone who does."

Sakura shook her head. This certainly was a dilemma. They couldn't just leave this to happen and not do something! Naruto spoke up before she had a chance though.

"Why not Sakura-chan?" Everyone turned to look at him.

"What? She could do it. She's strong enough, she took down Sakon by herself! She's responsible and sensible, she leads us as a team and always handles situations well, no matter how weird. She's clever, think of all the plans she's come up with today alone! Plus she's a medic ninja, you have to be really smart to become one of them. She's good at solving all kinds of quarrels, and in a fair way too. She's likeable! Friendly and helpful and kind. Little kids love her too. She thinks on her feet all the time as people try to catch her in law traps an awful lot, and you can't get much more trustworthy and honest than her! Sakura-chan's just perfect. She fits all the qualities!"

"I can't do it Naruto, I'm off travelling too much." Sakura tried to defend herself. She couldn't do this job, she'd never run a keep before. She was a ninja after all, not a housekeeper!

"Actually, I think Naruto has a point." Tayuya said, much to Sakura's dismay. "You've proven yourself worthy by far, and you're right here. I can always send a messenger to find you if we have a problem." She tapped her finger on her bottom lip, then smiled and grasped Sakura's hands. "Oh please agree to it!" She begged. "You'd be a much better leader than Isaea, _and_ you can get money out of it. Think of all the people you'd be helping, and you get some of the taxes, which I'm sure would help with your adventure! Please, I really need your help." Sakura just couldn't deny someone who asked her for help.

"Well, okay then…Just temporarily, until you find someone permanent."

"Thank you!" Tayuya hugged her tightly. "You don't know how much this means to me."

She rushed into the keep and came running out a few minutes later, with a scroll and pen in hand. It turned out to be a contract, saying Sakura was the official guardian of the keep and took full responsibility for it. The kunoichi signed all the pieces of paper given to her, and handed them back, just as some men swept into the courtyard. One was tall, wearing fine silk robes in rich blues and greens. He wore a blue hat with green on it over his neat brown hair. His face was pinched, as though he'd just eaten a lemon, and he seemed to be looking down his nose at everyone. His grey eyes were cold, and his white, flat teeth were bared in a grimace that was supposed to be a smile. According to Tayuya, this was Isaea Roenal. Isaea marched over to them with an air of smugness.

"Hello my dear." He called sickeningly, bowing low and kissing Tayuya's hand. "Hanging around with commoners again are we?" His voice was smooth, but laced with sarcasm and disapproval as he glared at Sakura and her team. "You know they really aren't worthy of your attention." He turned away from them all, surveying his surroundings.

Sakura's blood began to boil, but she held her temper in check. She was determined to win this silent mind battle they were about to have. No way would she have _her_ friends treated like dirt.

"These are the people who stopped Sakon and saved the keep." Tayuya was icily telling Isaea. "You would do well to treat them with more respect. Especially as one is now guardian of this keep."

That got a reaction. Isaea whirled around.

"Who?" He demanded. Sakura stepped forward, smiling sweetly.

"Me my _lord_." She simpered, curtseying. She made the gesture as insulting as possible.

"But I'm married to the sole heiress I'm afraid, my _friend_." He 'smiled', bowing back, equally as insulting.

"Betrothed actually, if his lordship doesn't mind my correction." She smiled back, being infuriatingly polite.

"Betrothed." He corrected himself, waving his hand carelessly.

"As you are only betrothed, his lordship has no real hold of the keep, so ownership went straight to Lady Tayuya. She did not wish to burden herself down at so young an age, so she passed ownership to me. Unfortunately, the paperwork has all been completed. His _lordship_ is a little too late." She held out her hand in subtle sarcasm.

He did not accept, choosing merely to glare at her. She shrugged and daintily returned her hand to her side, giving him her sweetest smile the whole time.

"I'm sure you are very busy my lord. No need to waste any more time here. We will handle everything and take care of the repairs. Do feel free to visit _any_ time, won't you? Guards. Would you be so kind as to escort his lordship off the premises? We really need to begin repairing this place, and Lord Isaea need not sully himself by joining in or spending his _valuable_ time with us commoners."

At this, two guards took Isaea to the drawbridge. He left, but not before glaring at Sakura, which was really the only thing he could do in retaliation. She had truly and completely beaten him. She turned her attention to Tayuya, who was giggling uncontrollably. After hearty congratulations from the girl, they both began giving instructions to the nearby servants, who had returned to the keep now it was safe. Once preparations for repairs were under way, the group headed back towards Konoha, asking Tayuya to keep an eye on things for them. She promised she would, and after the ninjas had crossed the drawbridge, Sakura instructed them to prevent further intrusion by raising the bridge. This would speed up repairs because no one would be able to disturb them from their work. Satisfied, the group left, on their way to Konoha's bridge district.

After 8 hours of solid travelling, a familiar set of gates appeared on the horizon. Tenten stretch slightly. All this travelling was making her sleepy and she could really use a nice rest. Sakura was thinking the same, and the moment they set foot inside the bridge district she spoke up.

"Why don't we go to the Five Flagons Inn? Their rooms are decent and they're supposed to have a theatre in the cellar. We could watch a play and then get some sleep. I think we all deserve it, besides, it's starting to get dark." She gestured to the sky, which was slowly deepening in colour.

"I think that's a good idea. We could all do with a bit of relaxation, and a play is just the thing." Tenten smirked. The pink-haired kunoichi and she thought alike.

"Aww, I hate plays. They bore me to tears!" Naruto whined.

"It might be fun Naruto-kun. It could be a comedy. Or if it gets too boring we can always spar." Hinata soothed.

"Thanks Hinata-chan!" The blonde gave her a grin, flashing his pearly white fangs.

"Do you agree Sasuke?" Sakura was asking the Uchiha.

He shrugged in response and hn'd. Taking that to mean yes, she led the way to the large pub.

It was a great deal cleaner than the Copper Coronet had been, but this wasn't the slums, so that was to be expected. Despite this, the Five Flagons Inn was the second worst pub in Konoha, not that this bothered the team. At least it didn't stink like the other pub had. They all bought a soft drink each (They never drank alcohol. It stopped them thinking straight, a dangerous thing when you have an Ita-spawn with you) and headed down the stairs towards the cellar.

"You'd think we'd be sick of cellars after Tayuya's keep." Naruto grumbled slightly.

Sakura ignored him, paying for 5 tickets at the desk at the bottom of the stairs. The play wasn't one she'd heard of, but never mind. It might be good. Taking a seat on one of the long wooden benches, she watched the stage. Sasuke sat next to her, and Naruto flopped down on her other side. Hinata daintily perched next to him, while Tenten primly sat beside the Uchiha. After a few minutes of awkward fidgeting, the curtains rose and the actors came on stage. All was silent in the audience.

"Fair lady!" Cried a man to the right of the stage. "Thou shalt be-est my…my…" He faltered and glanced nervously towards the sidelines, where no doubt ushers were standing. "My…" he continued uneasily.

"My love throughout the test of time, whereupon I love thee as the sea loves the shore, washing up the beach and most gently lapping the edges of the land." Someone whispered loudly from the side.

Sakura shifted in her seat. This play was _no_t looking promising. The man on stage tried his line again.

"My love throughout the…beach…whereupon…the time…most gently…washing up…the shore of the land." He murmured hopelessly.

The play went on in this manner for a few more moments, until one of the actresses stormed off in a huff.

"I can't work with such incompetence!" Came her shriek.

The curtains quickly fell and everyone left, on their way to the desk to no doubt reclaim their money. Naruto began to follow, but Sakura grabbed the back of his collar and held him firm. Once the room had completely emptied, she released him and walked towards the stage. Shrugging, the others followed. Pushing aside the curtain, the small group entered, just in time to see the actors and actresses angrily shouting at someone Sakura presumed was the manager.

"We cannot work like this!" One woman screeched.

"He is too new to work with us!" The next called out in turn.

"If you weren't so lazy and found someone to rescue Tensei(1) none of this would have happened!

"Who needs rescuing?" Sakura chimed in.

"Who are you?" The manager wearily asked.

"Someone willing to help." Came the reply.

"In that case, Tensei is our lead male character. He's a bard, sings, dances and performs. A few days ago he went into the sewers to have a look for something, I don't know what. Anyway, he hasn't come back yet and I have no idea what happened to him. We can't perform properly without the lead role, as you no doubt saw."

"Where's the entrance to the sewers?" She inquired.

"It's meant to be in the Temple district." He replied.

Sakura gave a curt nod, then turned on her heel and whisked her team out of the inn. No one bothered to ask where she was taking them, they all knew full well what she was going to do. 10 minutes later Sakura and Tenten were yanking and grunting and pulling at a heavy grate in the ground of the Temple district.

"Sakura-chan I'm tired." Naruto yawned, stretching. "Can't we do this tomorrow?"

Sakura paused and stood. Everyone held their breath as the kunoichi turned and froze Naruto in place with a cold glare.

"I already lost one person today." She hissed. "I refuse to lose another. I will _not_ risk wasting time. If you're tired go back to the inn and rest. We will return when we have saved Tensei."

The poor blonde shuffled uncomfortably, so a pale-eyed girl decided to rescue him.

"Gomen nasaii, Sakura-san. He's just tired, I'm sure he'll be alright in a minute when the adrenaline kicks in." Hinata said.

Sakura glared for a minute more, but her face and eyes softened and gave Naruto an apologetic smile before returning to the grate. After a few moments (and a little chakra induced strength from someone with pink-hair) the grate slid back into place, no one having seen the 5 ninjas slip into the depths of the sewer below.

Sakura allowed her team mates a little time, so their eyes could adjust to the darkness. This was something she had grown accustomed to during her time hunting for Gaara, so she spent the time scouting ahead before trotting back to the group.

"We have 3 choices." She said solemnly. "Go right, go straight or go left. All are riddled with danger and I can't see which will lead us to Tensei."

Hinata tried to use her Byakugan but was unable to see said man anywhere.

'_He's being hidden.'_ Sakura thought to herself. At Hinata's recommendation, they went straight. To the left would just take them miles around the sewer, to the right would lead them to a large party, far too large for a mere 5 ninjas to deal with apparently, while straight would lead them to a Rakshasa and a small army of Kobold Commandos. Although the Rakshasa would pose some sort of problem, it would be easier to take him on, rather than the other party. It took only two minutes for the corridor to end. They were in a small round room that Hinata confirmed was the centre of this section of sewer. The Rakshasa was stood in the centre of the room, his mini army around him.

Rakshasas were evil spirits that appeared in human shape, often with animal parts, so they looked like a mix 'n' match cocktail in animal shape. They had a taste for human meat and often used illusions to catch their prey. They were also well known mages, meaning they could perform jutsus.

The kobold commandos were less formidable thankfully. They were dog-like, but stood on two legs, like a human. Some were mages, others used long range weapons, such as kunai and senbon. They often attacked in large groups, but even the elite, such as these commandos, were weak and easy pickings for all but the weakest of fighters. And we're talking weak, as in fall over when you throw a kunai too hard, weak.

Sakura and Naruto wasted no time in getting down to business. They heaved their way through the kobolds, calmly slicing a head off here and stabbing a chest there. They headed for the main threat, the Rakshasa, leaving Tenten to pull out her scroll and deal with the rest of the little kobold bastards. Sasuke also got stuck in, throwing small fireballs everywhere, not wanting to waste a great deal of energy on such weak opponents. Hinata put in her worth as well, using gentle fist on any kobolds that got too close to the long range fighters. In no time at all the whole lot of the kobolds were dead, and Sakura took great delight in cleaving the dangerous Rakshasa in two.

The emerald eyed beauty wiped a smudge of blood off her face, looking to Hinata as to where they should head next. Said girl pointed down the North West corridor.

"There's someone down there. He's being attacked."

"By what?" Sasuke inquired swiping a drip of blood from his hand.

"It…it looks like…a corpse?" Hinata sounded disbelieving, but Sakura swore.

"Ah shit! I really hate zombies." She grumbled. "They stink really bad. Of rot and decay. Yeuch!"

Despite her protesting they left down the corridor indicated, walking as silently as they could. A clanging sound could be heard resonating up ahead, and just as Sakura had said, the stench of death and decay hit them all hard. Haruno was practically reeling from the smell. She covered her nose with her sleeve and fell against the wall. Her Ita-nose was particularly sensitive to this sort of thing and it left her head spinning, her eyes watering and her lungs burning for clean air.

"Stay here, I'll go on ahead. I'm more immune to this sort of thing." Tenten whispered.

Sakura didn't dare waste time in arguing, the person ahead could need help, so she merely nodded and Tenten continued alone. It did not take long for her to reach the end of the short corridor, but she remained in the shadows, gauging the situation. The man seemed to be doing okay on his own, but the zombie was an insistent one, obviously hell bent on eating flesh. It was no doubt coming to the end of its life span, as zombies (although dead) could only go for a certain amount of time before needing to feed. If they did not, the tortured soul possessing the body would be yanked from the corpse it was residing in, and the zombie would cease to be _un_dead, merely dead. This one was clearly desperate to remain in this world. Tenten decided to put it out of its misery and silently drew a kunai. There was no point in poisoning it, most corpses were already wrought with disease anyway, so poison had no effect.

She waited for the right moment to attack, then threw the weapon with pinpoint accuracy, catching her mark perfectly, the kunai lodging itself firmly in the creature's right temple, the weakest spot. Brain damaged, the zombie fell to the ground, twitched and then fell still. A small crying was heard, and then the body crumbled to nothing, no longer inhabited by whatever soul had used it. Tenten remained hidden for a little longer, unsure whether this man was friend or foe.

The stranger stood up, brushed himself off and re-tied his long brown hair into a low ponytail. He turned and looked around, his eyes exactly the same as Hinata's.

"Come out." He called, his eyes narrowing and his body tensing.

His voice was low and smooth, even and calm but with a hint of suspicion and alertness. This man was clearly ready to fight more if necessary. Tenten saw no reason to hide any longer. There was only one of him and if needed her team wasn't far behind. They'd have her back at a moment's notice should she require it, not that it would be needed, she could take this guy on. She wasn't some weakling after all. The girl stepped out of the shadows and gave a shallow bow. The man seemed quite calm, his neutral face not showing even the slightest hint of surprise.

"You're a girl."

Tenten felt a very Sakura-like annoyance spring in her mind. She straightened slightly, rather offended.

"A girl who just saved your butt." She cut back, her tone polite, but revealing that she would not stand such nonsense.

The brown haired male considered her for a second before holding his hand out politely.

"Neji, arigatou for your assistance." He gave his own shallow bow.

Tenten eyed him warily. He was obviously of the upper class. His tone, stance and aura in general just screamed that he had been well groomed, trained and taught in polite mannerisms of the highest order. Making a decision she grasped his hand in a firm handshake.

"Tenten, no problem."

He inclined his head slightly.

"Why are you down here?"

His tone was still even and light, but it was dripping with hidden suspicion and power.

"I'm with my team. We're here to help someone other than yourself." Tenten had no problems pulling off the same trick, though not quite as well as this Neji.

"I see no one else." He looked past her.

"Yeah well, the stench of that bastard that just turned to dust was a bit overpowering for our lovely leader." She glared at the floor where the zombie had been.

Neji raised an eyebrow at her but said nothing. Tenten sighed.

"So, just who are you and why are _you_ down here?"

Her tone offended him, she was sure, but nonetheless, he answered her.

"I'm a member of the Konoha Shinobi. I'm here on a rescue mission."

"You too huh? Sasuke's going for that thing too. Don't see the attraction myself but, there you go." She shrugged.

"I'm not going for it, I'm a full fledged member."

"So I should call you Neji-sama then? Don't get you're hopes up." The girl was unconcerned. "We don't do special honours in our group. The best you might get is Neji-kun." Then she turned back to the corridor. "You guys, come on. The damn thing's gone now. You might want to interview this guy."

Naruto came first, Hinata at his side, then Sasuke, who was looking very grumpy as he supported a rather green looking Sakura.

"It still smells. I've been sick twice." She mumbled apologetically.

Tenten gave her a soft smile and rubbed her back soothingly. Sasuke gave a disgruntled snort, but was ignored.

"This is Neji." She introduced. Sakura gave him a tired grin.

"Gomen about this. I'm not usually in such a state when I meet new people." She straightened up, seemingly no worse for the wear and much to Sasuke's relief, stopped leaning on him for support.

Her face began to return to its normal colour, and she gave a small bow. Her eyebrows rose in surprise when she heard he was a member of the Konoha Shinobi, and her eyes travelled to the dark haired boy beside her, gauging his reaction. Cool as usual. She sighed.

"Why are you all down here?" Neji asked, once again suspicious. "Why is it you have a member in training with you?"

"I can only tell you if you agree to join the group."

"What is your ultimate goal?"

Sakura filled him in on the details, leaving out only her friend's names. She told him hers and what she was, levelling with him right from the start. His reaction was similar to what Sasuke's had been, as he considered her offer. His eyes flicked to said Uchiha, contemplating his answer.

"I will join your cause. If only to keep an eye on you and see this lad through his training."

Sasuke snorted. "Lad? You're only about a year older than me. Don't patronise me so."

Neji's eyes narrowed. The Ita-spawn was already beginning to corrupt this guy. Neji would have to set him back on the path of righteousness. Sakura clapped her hands cheerily.

"Perfect." She chirruped. "We finally have a nice full team of 6 ninjas _and_ the door to boot."

"Door?" Naruto had been unusually quiet and was rather confused by now about what Sakura was talking about.

"Hinata said she couldn't see Tensei with her Byakugan right? Well, that means he's hidden, most likely in a non-detectable room, and I think that's the door behind you."

Neji turned and found his new team mate to be right. There was the door she spoke of. Funny though, he had to activate his own Byakugan (a common bloodline) to see it. The pink haired girl had no bloodline as far as he could tell, but none of the others were concerned, so he let it slide.

"You were seeking Tensei also?" He asked.

"Yeah, his manager requested we do it as no one else would. Would have done it earlier, but we were a tad busy helping out someone else." Naruto replied, watching as his friends opened the door he couldn't see.

"That's the mission I was assigned to. Rather lucky for us I do believe." Neji said, more to himself than Naruto, as the loudmouth was not really listening.

Just as the door was opened, an imp came flying out. It stopped when it saw them, glanced around and then went straight for Hinata's throat. She was normally gentle, but not when being attacked, and sealed off its vital points in a heartbeat. The imp died immediately, and she found a broken mirror in its grasp. She picked it up and slipped it into the bag on her back. Problem solved, they all headed into the room.

Sakura took the corridor to the left, and the others followed, not really doubting her judgement, except Neji. He didn't know why they were not curious as to where she was taking them, but remained silent, choosing to ponder such things in his own mind. The pink haired leader took them to a kitchen, where a tall, thin man stood, watching the stove. He turned as he heard the group come in.

"Who are you who dare enter the home of Mekrath?!" He demanded, his voice low and dangerous.

"Haruno Sakura." She stepped forward confidently, completely unafraid of the person before her. He wasn't so tough, she could tell.

"Such insolence! You defile my home with your presence and give me not one shred of respect. Give me one reason why I should not tear you and your pathetic friends to pieces. Speak! Or I shall be forced to kill you all!"

Neji would have made himself more polite when dealing with this man had he been in charge, his year as a Konoha Shinobi had given him some experience of this, but Sakura had no such experience and would no doubt get them all in a great deal of trouble. He glanced around. None of her team seemed concerned though…

"We defile your home? We are here from pure coincidence I assure you. We were unaware that anyone could live in sewers such as these."

Neji could have slapped his forehead. They were all doomed, but Sakura was not finished.

"However, now that you mention it, I suppose this is a marvellous place to conduct the darker jutsus?"

Great, just great. Make it obvious that you know he's evil why don't you?

"I should kill you for such remarks." The man vanished and reappeared in front of the kunoichi, who seemed to be more amused than threatened. Her eyes sparkled with mirth as Mekrath held a dagger to her throat. He withdrew it quickly though, a smirk touching his lips. "As it is, I find you quite spunky and possibly of help to me. You are clearly brave, not easily scared off. Perhaps you could retrieve something for me?"

Neji was shocked. This evil man was suggesting a deal, and Sakura seemed intent on taking it.

"My pet imp slipped its leash a few moments ago and stole a mirror."

"Say no more." The kunoichi held up one hand. "We caught the bugger as we opened the door. Hinata?"

The pale eyed girl pulled out the broken mirror and handed it to Mekrath. His eyes glittered.

"Perfect. Damaged, but repairable. In gratitude I offer you my most prized species. The male is very well built, he can do any kind of work you may wish to put him through young _lady." _He emphasised the 'lady' and winked, handing her a key and then vanishing.

Neji opened his mouth to protest, but stopped when he saw the girl shaking.

"Disgusting." She whispered. The words tasted dirty, so she spat them out louder. "Absolutely disgusting! How could anyone sell a human being as if they were some kind of object?! If I didn't think this slave was Tensei I'd have told that Mekrath guy to shove this key right up his ass!"

Neji was surprised to say the least. Who'd have thought an Ita-spawn could have a sense of justice? After a few more choice words on Sakura's part she marched through the corridors and stopped outside a cell on the right hand side. The man inside was unhealthily thin, his face pale and drawn. His blonde hair hung limply by his face and his eyes were dull and lifeless.

"What can I do for you mistress?" He said with a blank tone.

"For a start you can stop calling me mistress. Secondly you can hush up while we get you out of here." Sakura whispered, unlocking his cell door. The group led him outside and took him to the Five Flagons Inn. He looked at them curiously, but Sakura shook her head and just smiled at him. Once she had gotten him into the theatre, she called out.

"We have brought Tensei! Come and see!"

The actors, actresses and manager all came rushing out. Tensei's eyes widened as he stared in disbelief at Sakura. She merely grinned back at him.

"You didn't think I'd make you stay a slave did you?"

Tensei laughed and hugged her. "Thank you my raven!" He cried, his voice lost its toneless ness and a tropical lilt appeared.

"Do you always give nicknames to people?" Sakura enquired.

"Yes I do. Yours is raven."

"Why?"

"I'm not sure. I just think it suits you." He turned away and joined his friends.

The manager came to Sakura personally and thanked her, handing her 6 free tickets for the next performance and some money. She thanked him heartily and headed upstairs. Naruto yawned and tapped her on the shoulder.

"May we please go to sleep _now_?" He asked hopefully.

She giggled and nodded, renting out rooms for them all.

The ninjas all began to settle down in their rooms and Naruto made his decision. He had tossed and turned in bed for a few minutes, but gave up on sleep and padded down to Hinata's room. He had seen her fight and it was now or never. Knocking on her door, more timidly than he meant to, he asked if he could come in for a moment. Hinata opened the door and let him in, closing it behind her. She watched him stand in the middle of the room for a minute, before speaking. He seemed nervous, stroking the head of Gamakichi, the small frog that was always perched on his shoulder.

"Naruto-kun? Is this something to do with that choice you told me you had to make?" She asked a little shy. She could be completely wrong, but the blonde nodded, confirming her suspicion.

"I've been thinking about it for a long time now Hinata-chan. Seeing you fight was enough to make me need to ask." He gazed at her, his eyes searching her face for a hint of a reaction. "Would you be my mamoru?" He whispered.

Hinata's eyes widened, and she put her head on one side, considering his offer. It didn't take much thought before she gave him a bright smile.

"I would be honoured Naruto-kun."

He gave a chuckle, hugged her tightly and then went to the door.

"Arigatou Hina-chan!" She blushed at the new nickname. "I promise to protect you with my life. I'll fight by your side with pride and always be there should you need to call upon me." He made a small mark on her forehead with his thumb, as tradition and ritual said he should, while he made the oath.

Hinata's forehead glowed slightly, proof that the God's had approved and accepted the rite. Hinata was officially Naruto's new mamoru. The blonde moved his hand to her cheek and stroked it gently with his thumb, giving her a strangely shy smile. He thanked her once again, telling her she had no idea how much this meant to him, gave her a peck on the forehead as thanks and then left for his own room. Hinata touched her forehead gently, smiled and went to bed. Naruto was asleep not long after her.

A knock on her door drew Tenten from the bathroom. She flung it open, slightly irritated that they were interrupting her. She had just put her hair down and she hated anyone seeing her like this.

"What do you want Neji?" She snapped.

"I came to speak with you about Sakura."

"She hates it when we talk behind her back. If you have any questions, she'll be happy to answer them."

Neji pushed past her into the room. She sighed, but got the feeling he would not leave until he said what he had to say, and so closed the door and sat on her bed, continuing to brush her hair, a tedious task that she didn't much enjoy doing. He watched her for a moment and then suddenly spoke up without warning.

"Would I be allowed to visit my home?"

She dropped the brush in surprise. Of all the things she was expecting, that had not been one of them, but Neji looked deadly serious, so she picked up the brush and considered his question.

"Well, I should think so. She's not some evil woman who keeps people apart from their families, but we have one more mission before we can relax a little. We have to take down the slave trade we heard about. After that…I'm sure you'd be allowed to go. Why?"

"I have not seen my girlfriend in sometime. I wish to visit her."

Tenten looked at him from the corner of her eye as she finished brushing her hair. So he had a girlfriend? Well, she shouldn't really be surprised. With his looks, charm and obvious noble status he must be a prize catch.

"I'm sure she'll allow it once we've done what we need to do." She murmured. "May I go back to my bedtime rituals in peace now? Or was there something else?"

Neji shook his head and went to leave.

"Why ask me Neji?" She called before he left.

He glanced at her for a moment. "You're the one I'm most comfortable with." He said simply, then left.

Tenten put the brush on the bedside table and got under her sheets, feeling lonelier and sadder than ever.

"Lee." She whispered.

The next morning everyone rose bright and early (much to Naruto's dismay).

"Today we tackle the slave trade." Sakura announced to them as they gathered in her room. Her eyes flashed angrily. "Everyone here, except possibly Neji, has seen the terrible conditions these people are kept in, and we promised Hendak that we would sort this out. So let's sort it!"

They all left for the Copper Coronet, and it did not take long to get there. Sakura braced herself for the stench of beer as she flung open the door to the inn, and so was surprised when she did not smell it.

'_Hendak's been at work here.'_ She thought smiling.

"HENDAK!" She called. Said man came out from the back and greeted them with a smile.

"Perfect timing." He laughed and pulled them into a back room which turned out to be his office. "Captain Haegan just eased up his troops in the beached ship."

"So, do you have a plan of how we can get to this ship?" She asked.

"Yep." Hendak said coolly. "You have to go through some sewers to get to the beached ship. You know the corridor leading to what used to be the pits? Well, in there are two secret doors. One's full of people getting high, that's the door on the left. The one on the right is a passage leading to the sewers. You can use that."

Naruto slapped the inn owner on the back in a friendly manner, thanking him heartily. Leaving the office, Sakura led her team to the corridor Hendak spoke of, and searched the walls for the door. Sasuke pointed it out, his sharingan blazing. Together, they heaved the stiff door open, it had obviously not been used for many a year. After a great deal of pushing and panting and heaving and wheezing the door finally creaked open and the team went inside, leaning against the walls to catch their breath. Tenten recovered first and scouted out ahead.

"There are some stairs going down. They're what'll take us to the sewer I guess."

True enough, there were stairs at the end of the passage, but they were steep and damp, with water dripping from the ceiling, worsening slowly as they went down. Despite the struggle, everyone got down safely with no casualties.

"Now, I want this over and done with quickly." Sakura told her team. "We can't be dillydallying about, as we all deserve a rest and I'm sure we don't want to be stuck _here_ for ages."

They trudged through the long pipe, for a few minutes. These sewers were much worse than the ones in the temple district. They weren't as clean, (A.N. Can sewers be clean at all?) but they continued without complaint. Eventually, they reached some stairs that led to, what sounded like, the heart of the slave trade. No longer in the mood for caution, or niceties, Sakura slammed open the door and marched straight up to Captain Haegan.

"He's mine! Someone take out that medic, the rest of you, get the slavers!"

The battle that ensued was noisy, but didn't last very long. Neji took on the medic, sealing off his vital chakra points, while the rest took out the slavers, who didn't put up much of a fight, which disappointed Naruto greatly. Haegan wasn't much of a fighter either for a captain. Sakura dodged a left punch, a right kick and a head butt with all the grace and ease of a cat. She then delivered her own super strength blow to his stomach, leaving the captain sprawled on the floor gasping for air. In one swift movement his head lay at her feet and she marched to the other door, kicking it open with similar disregard for politeness.

Two trolls were about to devour some unwanted slaves, but were rudely interrupted by a large fireball which burned them to mere ashes, courtesy of Sasuke. Sakura went to the young slave girl who was very nearly breakfast, handed her some money, spoke a few words the others could not catch, and then sent her on her way, a big smile on the girl's face. Two more slaves were released from their cages, and sent away in a similar fashion.

Banging into the last room, Sakura had completely lost her temper. The sight of the poor slaves, who were often children of just 7 or 8, had sent her over the edge entirely. She sliced the head off every slaver in that room single handedly, and released all the slaves, giving each a little money to start their new lives with. There were no more rooms to explore, as the rest of the ship was too destroyed to use. The centre of the slave trade had been small, but dozens of slaves had been set free, and after another trip through the sewers, the ninjas found themselves back in the Copper Coronet.

Hendak grinned when he saw the thoroughly pissed off look on Sakura's face.

"Grotesque wasn't it? Well, not anymore thanks to you from the amount of blood you're covered in." He chuckled. "And I'll bet it's not yours either." He threw a bag at her, which she caught in one hand and looked at curiously.

"What's this Hendak?" She asked, examining the inside of the pouch.

"It's money. I raided Lehtinan's secret stash. I reckon you deserve it for taking down the slave trade."

"But we didn't do it for money!" She protested.

"So? Think of it as a thank you gift." Hendak waved her off. "Also, you'll get discounts whenever you come here from now on."

"But…but." Sakura spluttered. "But why? We did the public justice, we don't need such favouritism!"

"If I choose to give you discounts for doing me such an enormous favour, that is my choice. Now you will take that money and accept your discounts with good grace, or I shall be forced to give them to you for free."

Sakura's face turned pink, as her sense of morality and her politeness fought. Morality won, and she accepted his gifts with grace, thanking him a lot, and giving him a hug. He grinned and sent her on her way.

They left the district and went to the Government district at the request of Neji. Just as Tenten had said, Sakura was happy to let Neji see his girlfriend, and he led them to his home, which was nowhere near the Uchiha home, much to Sasuke's relief.

"Tsunami(2) I'm home!" The Hyuuga male called as he opened the door, and then stopped, his eyes wide in shock.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

(1) Tensei: Born (musician) Cause he's a bard!

(2) Tsunami: Wave (Like in the ocean)

Me: T-T I know. But it's 21 and a bit pages long on Microsoft word! See how sorry I am?! I wrote so much because it's so late. I hope you like it and it's the introduction of the newest team member, NEJI! Just to note, he is NOT related to Hinata.

**Inner Me: You took long enough! It's been about 2 months now since you last updated!**

Me: Don't remind me. -.-;

_Sasuke: You should be ashamed of yourself. Leaving your readers in such a state for two months!_

Me: I said I was sorry!

_**Sakura: But it's disgraceful!**_

Me: I know! I humbly prostrate myself before my readers' feet. –Kneels in front of readers- My sincerest apologies!

_**Sakura: -Sighs- I shouldn't really say this since you don't deserve them but…please review.**_


	10. Family problems Bonding time

Okidoki

Sorry for the long wait. I've had some trouble with a friend and I've been helping her sort it out. Don't really want to talk about it, but thank you for understanding.

On with the story WHICH HAS FINALLY REACHED DOUBLE FIGURES IN CHAPTERS! Hooray! Only problem is, this isn't really a chapter, it's more of a filler to show I'm still alive. I won't be updating much as I really have to help my friend and my GCSE's are in about 4 weeks. Thanks so much for your patience.

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire**_

**Chapter 10**

**Family Problems - Bonding Time**

Neji's eyes got rounder and rounder until they were the size of dinner plates. His mouth opened, but no sound came out, so it gaped like a goldfish would. When he managed to find his tongue at last all he could say was…

"Kaiza." Which was the name of the man who had his arms around Tsunami, who was much more in control of herself than Neji.

"Neji!" She cried. "I…I can explain!"

Clothes scattered the room and it was obvious what the two had been about to do. The Hyuuga male felt sick to his stomach and lights flashed in front of his eyes. His blood began to race and his vision turned red. How dare they! How dare they defile his home in such a way. But he had to remain calm. The Konoha Shinobi could kick him out if he acted rash. His eyes stung, but he was not about to cry, Hyuuga's never did such things, and it was pointless wasting tears on her. He turned on his heel and barged through the group of ninjas blocking him from the door.

Sakura's eyes were bigger than Neji's had been, Hinata was blushing furiously, Naruto was trying to shield her eyes unsuccessfully, Sasuke had turned away in disgust and Tenten was paralysed to the spot. How could someone betray their love in such a way? She wondered. Neji was a ninja, he could be killed at any moment, and here his girlfriend was having it off with some random? You had to treasure every moment you had when you or your lover was a ninja. Her thoughts travelled to the remains of Rock Lee, lying on the cold, unforgiving table in Orochimaru's lair. Her head turned to the door, where Neji's back could be seen retreating at a rapid pace. She gave Sakura a quick glance, who managed to pull herself together enough to give a small nod of approval, before bursting through the door after him. In the meantime, Sakura and the rest of the team set about hurriedly making excuses and apologies for the interruption and backing out as fast as their legs could carry them. Poor Hinata had fainted, and Naruto had taken it upon himself to carry her to the nearest inn.

"What are we going to do Sakura?" Sasuke enquired. "You follow Naruto, I follow Neji?"

She shook her head and pulled Sasuke alongside her.

"We'll let Tenten deal with it. Let's look after Hinata for now, I think that's best."

He shrugged and did as he was told, letting Tenten handle the situation. Sakura did seem to know the team better than he did after all…

Panting, she finally caught up with him. That Hyuuga could move when he wanted, but she had managed to keep him in her sights until he had stopped in a clearing in the nearby forest. At the moment he was stood in the middle of it, tense and shaking, fists balled at his sides. Not usually one for timidness, she shyly stepped closer, leaving him plenty of time to tell her to shove off. When he did not, she put one hand gently on his back and gave him a sympathetic look, waiting. He would talk first and get it out before she offered any advice. She did not wait long before he began to speak, a whisper at first, slowly growing in volume until he was shouting at the top of his voice.

"I loved Tsunami. We've been together since we were young, started going out not very long ago…I was planning on proposing soon. She never said…it didn't seem to matter…I thought she was proud! Why didn't she tell me she wasn't happy with me? Why did she do that to me? She knows how I feel! DAMN!" He cursed loudly into the trees, seemingly unaware of Tenten's presence. Suddenly he whirled around, his eyes wide and angry. "Do you know why I wanted to visit her?!" He demanded. Tenten shook her head calmly. "I wanted to make sure she was alright." He laughed maniacally. "I've been concerned that she was lonely without me. That guy, Kaiza, I suggested he keep her company, take her out to meet her friends, that sort of thing." His laughter died away to small, quiet sobs. "But I never thought she'd…she told me she was with me…that it was all okay. I understand why now! More time to spend with him!"

The anger returned, but quickly faded. His eyes were empty, and full of hurting. Not one to usually show his emotions, this was just too big a deal for Neji to handle alone, and he felt Tenten was as good as anyone to talk to right now.

"Why did she want to hurt me like this?" He asked no one in particular. Despite his earlier sobs, his eyes were dry; he had not shed a tear for her.

"I don't know Neji." Tenten soothed, stroking his back comfortingly. "I can't understand why she did it, but being like this won't help."

"What can I do now? I can't simply kick her out of my home. Where will she go? With Kaiza yes but…how will I cope? That whole house is filled with memories…"

"Why not go and talk with her?" She reasoned gently. "Get her side of the story. Perhaps you can sort things out."

Neji shook his head.

"I can't, what would I say? What if he's still there?"

"I doubt it. She'll be expecting you back. I'm almost certain that when you return the house will be spotless and not a shred of evidence will be left suggesting he was ever there."

After a few moments of silent consideration, the Hyuuga straightened and he nodded bravely.

"This moment of weakness…" He glanced at Tenten.

"It never happened." She confirmed with a small smile.

He offered a half-hearted smirk in return, before a determined frown settled on his face, and he marched confidently back towards the Hyuuga compound. Once there, he hesitated only for a moment before flinging the door open and calmly walking inside, Tenten at his heels. Just as she had said, the house was spick and span, with a nervous looking Tsunami sat at the table in the dining room. He sat opposite her, and his brown-haired companion left the room to give them some privacy. Sheepishly, Tsunami began her tale…

After 20 minutes of idly looking around the room, she heard a door creak and knew Neji and Tsunami were finished. She returned to their midst. The two shook hands, bowed, and then Tsunami left, suitcases in hand. The Hyuuga, was looking anywhere except at the two women, settling on a spot over the doorway. Seconds ticked by, as the silence grew. Somewhere far away, the front door clicked shut, but he paid it no mind. Finally, once certain she had gone, he spoke.

"I let her go. It was what she wanted."

He felt a hand on his shoulder, telling him the owner of it understood, and they left, going to catch up with their team mates and check on Hinata.

When they arrived at the inn, Hinata was sat looking weak and pale in a comfy booth, a concerned Naruto at her side. Neji apologised to her profusely for having to see such a thing, but she waved him off, telling him not to worry, it wasn't his fault after all. Sakura cast him a worried look, but at Tenten's 'don't go there' look, kept her silence. The rest of the time they spent in the booth was awkward, torn between silences and taking turns checking on Hinata's condition with Naruto. Eventually, Sasuke could no longer stand the tension, though he didn't mind the peace and quiet it brought.

"We can't simply sit around here." He announced to the silence. "We have a mission remember? Let's get on with it and stop moping."

A pink-haired kunoichi gave her team a concerned glance, but nodded and stood up anyway.

"He's right. It'll take our minds off what's just happened and we can make some progress with Ino while we're at it."

Agreeing, they all made their way outside, and towards the edge of the government district, where something very interesting caught Sakura's attention. It was a pale-blue skinned woman tied to a pole, with kindling at her feet. A large crowd surrounded her, shouting loudly, though their cries were mixed together and indistinct. The face of the woman looked familiar, but she couldn't quite place it.

"Burn the witch!" One member of the crowd called.

"We want blood!" Another added.

"Kill Viconia!"

Realising who the woman was, Sakura jumped forward to untie her just as a torch was brought forward. The crowd began to flee, and some ran for their lives. Others begged for mercy. She sent them all on their way, and turned to the drow elf before her.

"Thanks for that old friend." The blonde chuckled. "A few more minutes and I'd have been roast meat." The laughter died in her throat when she saw the un-amused look on the pink's face. Gulping, she turned more humble and gave a small smile.

"You." Sakura stated. "Have got some explaining to do."

Viconia shuffled uncomfortably, suddenly finding her feet highly interesting.

"Another family member?" Sasuke enquired sarcastically.

"Of course not!" The emerald eyed beauty scoffed. "She is not of _my_ family. She's a drow elf, trained to be a medic, only she uses her skills for darker purposes, like raising the dead and causing disease rather than curing it. The only reason I saved her at all is because I know her from my Gaara hunt. She has many flaws, but she has her uses too I suppose."

"What's a drow?" Hinata was curious.

"Drow are elf traitors. They descend from the elves that preferred life underground to life spent in the forests and sunlight. Their skin turned blue, black depending on how long their family has lived underground and their rank. Their hair is normally blonde, but can have a hint of blue, and they make amazingly strong armour, but it disintegrates once it hits the sunlight. They are cold, cruel creatures usually, with women being dominant, and men being treated like worms. They are also ruthless, and will kill their own children if they feel like it." Tenten's voice was icy, matching her glare. "Viconia is a little different however. She is not quite so ruthless, though she does enjoy picking fights with people."

"What have you got to say for yourself?" Sakura demanded, ignoring her friend's explanation.

"I came here on business!" The drow held up her hands in protest. "I'm innocent. Somehow that crowd got a hold of me and decided I was a witch. How ignorant of them. Don't they know the difference between a witch and a medic? Well…a cleric." She backed down in response to Sakura's raised eyebrow.

"Cleric? Is that what you call the darker medic ninjas now?"

A nod of confirmation.

"Get out of here Viconia. I don't want to see anymore trouble from you."

"Fair enough." She shrugged. "If you _do_ need to see me for any reason, you'll find me at the graveyard district. It's so peaceful there, and the gloom is positively delightful!" With that she was gone, and Sakura stared at where she had been distastefully.

"Typical." She mumbled, but shook her head and continued where they had been heading anyway.

Towards the Docks district, where trouble could always be found and hopefully some information on their 'shady' friends as Gaelan Bayle had mentioned a few days ago. After all, they didn't want to join their midst _completely_ unprepared. As they wandered towards their destination, she tutted, watching the sky. It was getting darker and she just wanted to rest in a nice warm bed. Unfortunately for her, it seemed it was not to be, for the moment she entered the district someone jumped on her, screeching at the top of their voice.

"Death! Doom! Disaster! We're all going to die!"

And with that, whoever it was had gone, no doubt to spread the message of doom with others. Sakura shook her head and reached for her money bag. Hang on… She began to search through her backpack, but the money bag was nowhere to be found. Guessing what had happened, she began to panic. If that guy had robbed her, how were they supposed to pay the money Gaelan had asked for? In desperation, her eyes roamed the streets, looking for the thief. Luckily, she located him quickly and gave chase.

"Stop thief!" She shouted, running as fast as she could after the man.

When she felt she was close enough, she leapt, tackling him to the floor, while wrestling the bag out of his hands. Someone else came to her aid, holding him still with one hand, searching for any other stolen goods with the other. Once all the money had been recovered, she stood and gave a nod to Sasuke, who still had the robber pinned down. He nodded back, but instead of releasing the man, he dragged him to a nearby ninja, who took the robber and vanished with a poof. Sakura watched curiously, but shrugged and let it slide. At least he hadn't done a Naruto and killed the guy. She placed the money bag in a safer place and made sure that she would not be losing it again.

"Where's the nearest inn I wonder?" She asked no one in particular, stifling a large yawn.

"The Sea's Bounty Tavern." Neji answered her. "This way."

Sakura stepped back and let him take the lead, glad of the reprieve. Being a leader really took it out of her sometimes.

The Hyuuga lead them under a bridge, through a long street, and then down some stairs. He opened a door, allowing the ninjas in, then went up to the counter to order a room. The pink-haired kunoichi collapsed tiredly into a chair, ready for nothing but a nice long nap.

"Come on Sakura. We've got a room." She heard someone say.

She pulled herself up and leaned on the person, mumbling something even she couldn't understand. Whoever it was sighed and helped her up the stairs. She heard her friends say goodnight to one another and enter their separate rooms, as someone led her to her own room and gently sat her on the bed.

"Goodnight Sakura."

"Mmphhblurble." She muttered incoherently, rubbing her eyes and trying to put her pyjamas on over her clothes.

The door closed and she prepared herself, somewhat clumsily, for bed.

Tenten wasn't sleepy. Her eyes were wide and she had no desire to sleep right now. Deciding it couldn't hurt to look around, she went out of her room and back downstairs to the main tavern. Neji was down there funnily enough, slowly sipping a drink of water and staring into space. She grinned and plonked herself next to him, nudging him slightly.

"Moping down here are we?"

He just rolled his eyes at her, keeping his silence. She rolled her eyes back, in a comical imitation, and suggested they go downstairs to see what sort of entertainment the tavern had. Maybe a play or some music to dance to or something. He declined, but she pulled him up anyway, telling him not to be such a spoilsport and to have some fun.

"It might help take your mind off Tsunami." She reasoned.

He sighed defeatedly and followed her towards the stairs going down when they were rudely interrupted.

"So Tenten. Long time no see." A man smirked.

His eyes were grey, matching his skin and his hood covered his face.

"Do I know you?" Tenten cocked her head to one side, a perfect imitation of Sakura.

"Oh yes you do." The man snapped. "No doubt my name will remind you. Ployer sound familiar?"

The kunoichi considered it for a minute, then shook her head. "Nope, doesn't ring a bell. Sorry."

Ployer collapsed comically, before angrily getting up. "Don't you remember at all?!"

"Um…did you maybe sell me something once?" Tenten put a finger to her lip, thinking.

"NO! You daft cow, you got me in trouble with the harpers!"

"Did I? I'm afraid I don't recall…"

"Ployer! A slave-trader! You got me convicted! Surely you remember?"

Tenten smirked. "Of course I remember, please don't insult me so. I merely wanted to be reassured that you admit to your crime."

Ployer glanced around as patrons of the tavern sniggered. Someone shouted to him.

"She got you there mate!"

Ployer snarled angrily, then rearranged his face into an evil grin that Tenten did not like the look of. He snapped his fingers, and 3 men in green and black robes appeared ominously.

"Enjoy my present Tenten."

The men zapped her with some strange kind of light that left her feeling oddly weak. Then, the four disappeared.

"What was that?" Neji asked, looking at her concernedly.

"Don't know." She replied, putting a hand to her forehead. Something was very wrong. She felt terrible and the room was starting to spin. "Neji…Take me to see Sakura right now please. It's urgent."

The ninja let her lean on him and helped her up the stairs. She kept stumbling, and her face was terribly pale. Coughs racked her body, making her shudder, but she declined his offer to carry her. She could do it. He left her leaning against a wall on the corridor and hurried to Sakura's room, banging loudly on the door because, man, could that girl sleep. She opened the door, rubbing her eyes and looked at him, a mildly confused expression adorning her face.

"Yes?"

"It's Tenten." He said gravely.

Even in her sleep deprived state, Sakura managed to grasp the urgency of the situation, much to Neji's admiration. She immediately went to check over Tenten, telling him to wake the rest of the team. She checked her friend over as best she could, concentrating well despite lack of sleep. By the time she stood up the rest of her team had arrived.

"Well?" Neji asked.

"She's been cursed and has a wasting disease for good measure. I've tried every jutsu known to medics, nothing helps. This is a very complex curse, one I couldn't cure even with proper sleep. It must be a new illegal one, otherwise I could help her. However, from what I can gather if we don't find a cure soon she'll die."

"How long do you give her?" Naruto had a grim face on for once.

Sakura shook her head sadly. "10, maybe 15 hours tops."

"Less than a day." Hinata murmured.

The pink head gazed at her ill friend for a moment, who was sat on the floor, looking deathly pale and upset. "Is there anyone you know we might be able to ask about this?" She asked.

"Bernard at the Copper Coronet, or maybe the authorities?" Was the whispered reply.

Sakura helped her friend gently to her feet. "Let's go and see Bernard then. The slums are closer than the government district. Neji, would you carry her?"

Neji took Tenten into his arms, ignoring the weak protests. Together, the group ran as fast as they could to the inn. Time was against them, as every minute that passed the brown-haired kunoichi grew weaker. By the time they reached the slums, she was too tired to even protest, merely whimpering in Neji's arms. Haruno made her way to Bernard.

"Well, h'lo there…HOLY CRAP TENTEN! What th' hell happened? Ya look like ya've been poisoned! In fac', thinking 'bout it, you look th' same as that harper friend o' yours. Found dead he was, poisoned in th' same way as you."

What little colour was left in Tenten's face drained away.

"Do you know where the culprit is?" Sakura asked.

Bernard shook his bald head. "No. I'm sorry, but if'n I did, you can bet I'd tell ya."

She thanked him and headed with her team to the government district, and the council of six building. Unfortunately, everyone they asked had no idea where Ployer was, though they all supposed the green and black robed men were probably using jutsus without a permit. Frustrated, and growing worried about her friend's worsening condition, Sakura slumped down against a tree in the park just outside the building.

"Now what do we do?" She asked no one in particular.

"Perhaps I could be of assistance?" A voice said from the darkness. "I work for Ployer, however, my associates and I are rather _unhappy_ about the fact he has not paid us for our services. For some gold, we might be persuaded to not show up next time he calls us."

"You're one of those green and black robed guys right?" Sakura asked.

"That is correct. My name is Terrece"

"How much would it take to get you to kill him when he calls you?"

"For such an act…2000 GP sounds reasonable."

The kunoichi thought for a minute, then decided that it was worth it. "2000 GP it is. Where can we find Ployer?"

"In the east side of the slums district. The house looks derelict and abandoned." A hand came out from the darkness and took the money. "Thank you. The deal has been done." Then both he and the hand disappeared.

Haruno got to her feet and they all left to return to the slums. Just as Terrece had said, there was an abandoned house on the east side of the district. Upon entering, Ployer came down the stairs, and at the sight of him Tenten pulled herself up and stood shakily in front of him, swaying where she stood.

"What have you done to me?" She demanded as best she could in between coughs. Ployer laughed.

"Merely a little payback for giving evidence against me. If you are a good girl though, I may be tempted to release the curse. Get down and beg for forgiveness!"

"Never." She gasped.

"What a delight. You can barely stand you foolish girl and yet you still refuse. Get down and kiss my feet, beg girl, beg. Otherwise you will die in a matter of minutes!"

"I will not!" She countered, stumbling back a little and leaning against Neji for support.

"Then die! I will not kill you yet, I want you to suffer. Your friends on the other hand have seen too much. They must be eliminated." He snapped his fingers.

Terrece and the other men appeared. One of them gave Sakura a small wink, before the three of them turned on Ployer and killed him with a flash of light.

"What goes around comes around Ployer." Terrece stated. "You will find a lock of her hair on his body. That will cure her." He told the group before he and his comrades disappeared once again.

Naruto immediately began to search Ployer's body, and sure enough found a lock of Tenten's hair. He handed it to her, and while she still clung to Neji to keep herself upright, a little colour returned to her face.

"Thank you. I feel a little better now, though I'll need some rest before I completely recover no doubt." She gave a weak grin.

Between them, Sakura and Neji supported her back to the Copper Coronet, where Bernard was delighted to see the brown-head looking slightly better. With Hendak's permission he gave the girl a free room for the night, and although the others still had to pay, they were all extremely grateful to him for his generosity. Exhausted, the pink-haired leader collapsed onto her soft bed, letting her tiredness consume her, before realising somewhat amusedly, that she had just wandered around several districts in her pyjamas. In her worry for Tenten's health, she had forgotten to get dressed. Too tired to be embarrassed, she allowed sleep to take her. However, as life is never kind, her sleep was not restful. She dreamt she and Ino were wandering around Candlekeep. They passed their old mentors.

"You know, after all this time…their faces…all look the same. I just can't remember them properly…" Ino told her, concerned.

The mentors all died instantly. Ino seemed not to have noticed, and they continued to walk, until they came to Haku.

"Haku. He took such good care of us…but it has been so long. Was he truly good? What was his face like? I…just can't remember." She pondered.

Haku died in the same way as the mentors. Sakura wanted to stop, tell Ino what was happening, but she had no control over her feet or her voice, and so had to silently follow her sister. Next they came to Gaara.

"Was he truly evil? Why did we chase him so? My memory…it just evades me…I can't remember anything about him it seems…" Ino shook her head.

Gaara followed the path Haku had taken. This time, the blonde did not move on though. She faced Sakura with a confused look on her face.

"What about me? Am I really who I think I am?"

Sakura could see where this was going, but still could not call out.

"I just wish I could…"

'_NO!'_ Sakura thought. _'Don't say it!'_

"…remember…" With that, Ino collapsed and died.

The emerald eyed kunoichi regained control of her voice, but found she still could not move her feet. Orochimaru appeared from nowhere and walked towards her, smiling.

"You sister is weak. She doubts herself and her memories. You will go the same way too if you are not careful. We shall meet again." With that, everything faded, and when Sakura next opened her eyes, she just saw the plain white ceiling of the room she was sleeping in.

She sat up and looked around. Everything was normal as it should be. Tears pricked her eyes and fell one by one onto the bed covers. Holding her head in her hands, she wept terribly.

'_What's happening to me?'_

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Me: Hope you enjoyed. Thanks again for your patience. If anyone's interested, it's just under 13 pages long. Don't know when the next update will be, but there will be one. Please don't give up on me just yet.


	11. Unburdening Sasuke shares

Another update

Another update! Woo! I'm on a roll! Go baby yeah! Go me, it's my birthday, go me, it's my birthday. Well, okay so it's not but…W00T!

-Crickets chirp-

Ahem -Coughs awkwardly- In other matters…SCHOOL SUCKS! T-T Now, being as I have nothing of real interest to say, on with the story!

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire**_

**Chapter 11**

**Unburdening – Sasuke Shares and a crime is solved**

The door creaked and Sakura's head jerked up. She observed Sasuke stood by the door through puffy, red eyes, and quickly swiped away the last tears on her cheeks. Giving as best a smile as she could manage, she stood up off the bed where she had been sitting.

"Good morning Sasuke-kun! Did you sleep well? Why are you here? Is there something you want to tell me or did you just come to wish me good morning? Could maybe hurry up because I'm in an awful hurry and I need to get dressed really." She babbled.

Sasuke remained where he was, calmly watching her as he leaned against the door frame coolly.

"Why were you crying?"

She gave a small, completely fake giggle. "I wasn't Sasuke-kun, I'm just tired. I didn't sleep much last night you see and it's getting to me and…"

"Your pillow is sopping wet."

She glanced at her pillow, silently cursing herself as she saw there was indeed a large wet patch, the result of her sobbing heavily into it earlier that morning. Sighing, she gave up the act, dropping all traces of a smile and sitting back down on her bed wearily. She gazed up at him, waiting for some kind of comment. When he was not forthcoming, she gestured towards the bed.

"Sit down then."

He crossed the tiny room in two strides and sat next to her, a decent distance away, watching warily for any sign of tears. She merely fiddled with her hair quietly, not meeting his eye, trying to figure out where she should begin. Deciding she was probably better off just starting from the beginning, she recounted everything that had happened in her dream.

"Normally such a small thing as a dream wouldn't concern me, but I just got these deep feeling of unease and I just know something is wrong. It's like a gut feeling and I just can't shake it. Plus, I don't ever recall having such a morbid dream before…Something is not right. I'm certain of it." Her hand dropped to her lap, and she fiddled with the hem of her dress, just peeking out from under her armour.

She glanced at the raven haired boy beside her. He appeared to be deep in thought, so she said nothing more. After a few awkward minutes of silence, Sasuke finally spoke up.

"It's probably just your Ita-spawn side playing you up since you won't kill anyone."

Her temper flared. "Will you stop that?! I am not some monster going round killing everyone and everything in sight, so stop treating me like it!" She jumped to her feet as he stood up and glared up at him.

He shrugged. "Don't blame me for your dark-side."

He just knew how to push her buttons. If anything got Sakura riled, it was calling her evil just because of her father. Heck, it wasn't _her_ fault the God of Murder was her dad. She tried so hard to be good and follow what Haku had taught her. Having one of her so-called 'friends' wind her up about it was not something she would take lying down.

"Now you listen to me!" She caught the front of his collar and pulled him down to her height, so she could see eye-to-eye with him. "I am not a blood-thirsty vampire! I am not a rampaging killing machine! I am not a soul-sucking demon! Get your head out of your arse, stop beating your almighty chest and for once treat me with a little respect. I have done nothing to deserve this kind of attitude and I won't stand for it. You certainly won't make it into the Konoha Shinobi like that!" With that she let go of his collar, marched to the door and opened it. "Goodbye I will see you later. I need to get ready."

She shut the door mere moments after he was out of it. Before she leaned her back against the cool wood, breathing heavily and trying to soothe her raging temper and sore wounds he had caused to resurface. Once she had regained enough control of herself to breathe normally again, she went about pulling her weapons and backpack and various other adventuring items on, stopping every once in a while to mutter something, such as, "Insensitive _git_. What crawled up his ass and died?!" and other curses of the like. About ten minutes later, she stomped out of the door and downstairs to her team mates, ignoring Sasuke completely.

The cold air outside hit them all hard, and everyone was shivering by the time they got to the bridge district. As they made their way through the town, a large gathering of people caught their attention. In the centre of the group appeared to be some kind of creature. Sakura pushed her way to the forefront and grimaced at the sight that met her eyes. Some poor soul had been killed, skinned and left to rot in the middle of the road. She backed off looking disgusted, listening to the talk of the locals as she did so.

"…say it's a serial killer…"

"…twelfth one this week I hear…"

"…not even the _lieutenant_ knows what's going on…"

"…tried everything they can…"

"…only three witnesses…"

"…total mystery they say…"

The kunoichi had heard enough to convince her to intervene, and none of her friends were surprised at the news, in fact, Tenten even said that she had taken the liberty of getting the lieutenant's name for them. Sakura gave her friend a wide grin of thanks, and together, they all headed to a large, burly man, with rippling muscles and a ferocious looking spear in one hand, that looked like it weighed a ton, though he held it with ease.

"Hi there Lieutenant Aegisfield. I hear you've been having problems with a serial killer around here. Can you tell me what's going on?" She asked politely. He looked at her carefully.

"It's nothing for you to worry about citizen. Yes there is a killer, but we're hot on his trail."

"That's not what I heard. I hear you're having trouble catching this guy, so I've come to offer some help."

"No thank you."

"Can't you at least give us the names of the witnesses? No harm in that is there?"

The lieutenant hesitated, but gave them 3 names anyway. Rampah, a beggar man, Rose Bouquet, a prostitute, and Faraji, the young boy who found the latest body. She thanked him for his time, and the team decided to head towards Faraji first. The small boy was eager to speak to them and retell his adventure, but came up with nothing really useful, so the 6 left him and headed towards a small camp for the homeless in the northwest of the district. Sure enough, they found Rampah near the edge of the camp.

"Hello, Rampah?"

"I don't know nothin'!" Was the short, sharp reply.

"But I heard you spoke to the guards and we're here to help…"

"I said I don't know nothin'. I ain't said a word to them there guards and I don't know nothin'!"

Sakura was losing patience slightly, but kept a check on her temper.

"Well, if you don't know nothing, that implies you know something, and I would like to know what that something is." She countered.

Rampah opened his mouth, but seemed to be at a loss for a reply to this statement. Haruno continued her onslaught.

"It'll be worth your while." She sang, jingling a bag of coins in her small, pale hand. His eyes followed the bag greedily.

"Fine. 50GP and I'll tell you something I didn't even tell the guards!"

"That would be just lovely. Thank you." She said smugly, counting out the required amount where he could see. She held the money tight in her fist. "Give us the information and you can have it."

"I found this here exotic hide." He licked his lips, his eyes hungrily watching her hand. "You can have it if you give me that money." He held out a small patch of animal skin, and the two exchanged.

"Thank you very much." Sakura said primly, keeping a hold on the hide and twirling on the spot, heading off in the other direction and leaving Rampah to count his money.

Their next port of call was Rose Bouquet. The woman was tall and proud, but she had a face like a boot and it was covered with heavy make-up. Her clothes emphasised her small cleavage and stumpy legs, and she point blank refused to tell them anything unless they paid her for her time. Another 50GP exchanged hands and suddenly the old woman was all talk, pleasant as you please.

"Well hun." She directed her words to Sasuke, who looked thoroughly irritated by this. "I saw a guy running from the scene of the crime. He had some kinda weird looking cloth dangling from his arm…" She thought for a minute. "Come to think of it, it was probably the poor victim's skin. Anyway, as he was leaving, I smelt something awful funny. Kinda like Guril berries…or maybe it was something else? Bel Dalemark over there would know. He works with stuff like that, exotic hides too. Funny man he is." She pointed to a large merchant just a little down the street.

"Thank you. Would it be okay for us to come back and talk to you again in a few minutes?" Sakura butted in before Sasuke could say anything.

"Um…sure, I guess sweetie. You did pay for your time after all."

"Thanks." She then marched over to Bel. "Excuse me, are you Bel?"

"Sure am little lady, what can I do for you?"

"I was wondering if you could identify this?" She handed him the hide that Rampah had given her.

"Why, this here's elephant, I'd recognise the course skin any where. You'd probably want to talk to the tanner about this. It's most likely his since he always buys this sort of thing." Sakura's eyes narrowed.

'_Bingo our first suspect.'_ She thought. "Thanks." She said aloud. "Um, I hate to be a bother but, do you have anything that smells similar to Guril berries?"

Bel put his head on one side, looking at her curiously, but he nodded nonetheless. "Of course. There are three things that have a similar scent. Guril berries, Solik berries and Oak bark. Since you've been such a pleasure to have around you can have them for free. Business is kind of slow anyway."

"Thank you so much, we're very grateful." She smiled.

As they were walking off, Naruto piped up. "Sakura-chan, what's the point of all this?"

"We're going to find out who the murderer is Naruto, just watch and learn."

She went back to Rose and gave her the three items. "Which was it you smelled?"

Rose took long sniffs of each thing. "Hm…well, I'd say it's definitely without a doubt the Oak bark. Used in tanning that is."

Sakura looked like Christmas had come early. She heartily thanked Rose for her time, and led her friends towards the tannery.

"I still don't get it Sakura-chan." Naruto was completely bewildered.

Sakura sighed, but turned around anyway to give him an explanation.

"Look, there was some animal skin found at the scene of the crime right?"

"Right."

"Bel said it was elephant skin right?

"Right."

"Elephant skin is used by tanners, the people who make armour right?"

"Right." Naruto was beginning to see where this was going.

"There was also the smell of oak bark from the murderer right?"

"Right, but what does that have to do with the tanner?"

Tenten rolled her eyes and intervened. "Rose just told you."

"Huh?"

"Oak bark is used to help make armour Naruto-kun." Hinata pulled on his sleeve.

"Ah. So all the evidence…"

"Points to the tanner, you got it." Sakura grinned.

"I take it we will be visiting him?" Neji said.

"Undoubtedly." Sasuke sighed.

The group had reached the tanner's shop by this point, and they all walked through the door to come face to face with the tanner.

"Good afternoon!" He greeted cheerfully. "What can I do for you lovely customers today?"

"How about telling us why you've been killing innocent people and skinning them you sicko?!" Naruto burst out. Sakura slapped her forehead in frustration.

The tanner was unfazed. "I'm sorry but I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about, and unless you have some proof I'm afraid I will have to ask you to leave."

"You'll have to forgive my friend, he's always like this." Sakura smoothed over coolly, thinking quickly. "He's had one too many bumps on the head." She whispered. "That frog with him? He thinks it's the son of a giant toad lord." Giggling she leaned back. "I'm sorry I didn't catch your name…?"

"Rejiek Hidesman." The tanner replied, looking a little more relaxed.

"Rejiek." Sakura smiled. "I believe you asked for proof of your guilt did you not?" She had stalled long enough for her friends to block the door, and Rejiek's face fell.

"Yes. I did ask for proof."

Haruno calmly presented him with her evidence. "Firstly, the smell of Oak bark, used in the tanning process is it not?" A nod of affirmation. "Secondly, elephant hide, extremely rare. Yours I believe?" Another nod. "Do you have anything to say?"

"Yes."

"What?"

"Goodbye." He fled down some stairs to the cellar, and the ninjas chased, hot on his heels.

There were several corpses, in varying states of decay at the bottom of the stairs, each one skinned, but they all merely jumped over them, chasing Rejiek down yet another flight of stairs. This flight led to some docks, and Rejiek and an accomplice jumped into the only boat and escaped into the sewers. Sakura launched a kunai after them, but even her sharp eyes could not see through the overwhelming darkness. Cursing all the way back into broad daylight, she had no choice but to inform the lieutenant of their discovery.

"Amazing detective work. I'll have every ninja in Konoha looking out for him. In the sewers or not he won't escape." He handed the depressed kunoichi 500GP and sent her on her way.

"I can't believe he escaped!" She ranted to her friends as they headed for the docks. "We were so close! Ooh." She sat down on a rock angrily and pouted.

"Why don't we all take a few minute's break? We'll meet back here in ten minutes or so." Tenten suggested.

They all agreed, and paired up. Tenten dragged Neji to a nearby weapon's shop. They had a gorgeous sword that she'd had her eye on for a while, whereas Naruto and the gentle Hinata headed to a nearby park to spar for a bit. Sasuke was left alone with the still sulking Sakura. He sighed and flopped down next to her.

"You remind me of my sister." He said unexpectedly. Sure he liked silence, but this was too overbearing, even for him.

"How so?" Good, he had her attention.

"You sulk in the same way she does. It's unnerving since you're both normally so cheery and friendly." He glanced at her. "I'm sorry."

Her head shot up in surprise and her rosy lips were parted in shock.

"I haven't been treating you fairly, you're right. Shika(1) would be ashamed of me."

"Shika?"

"My sister. She stays at home and looks after my father."

"Is he ill?"

"No. Just drunk. He's always drunk." Sasuke said bitterly.

He glanced at her again, but she did not have that irritating look of sympathy or mocking people usually wore when he told them about this. She had a, 'you can talk if you want to' look. And he did want to. It had been bugging him for a long time, and he knew Sakura was good at solving problems. Sighing, he began his tale.

"My father runs a business, it used to be very successful. He loved my mother very much, and for the first few years of my life all was peaceful. We lived as a normal family, and were very respected. Then a new merchant came on the scene, called Danzou. He and my father were very competitive. After a few years, my mother died unexpectedly, the medics could never figure out why. My father, Fugaku, was convinced that it was Danzou's doing, and saw little reason to carry on without my mother around. He began to drink more. More and more and more still everyday. Things worsened, and my sister was restricted to the house more and more."

His voice was cold, as were his eyes, but inside, a raging fire burned.

"He didn't want to let her out of his sight, in case something happened to her like it did to my mother. She had no friends and was constantly stuck inside the house. While this was happening he began to train me in the family business, but I found it boring and disinteresting. Even then I had always wanted to be in the Konoha Shinobi, but as each day passed, so too did my desire to escape from the hell hole I called a home. When I came of age, I tried to apply for a place in the Konoha Shinobi, but you had to have someone to recommend you. I foolishly asked my father. He said no of course, and ranted and raved for nights about what I had asked. He called me a disgrace, but it just made my desire to leave burn brighter. I searched the scrolls for many nights, to see if there was anyway for me to become one of the Shinobi. At last, after months of endless research, I found what I was looking for. I could join, but I had to be specially trained in some sort of field, so I began attending a night class that trained people to be ninjas. I did it in the utmost secrecy, so my father would not catch wind of what was going on. I continued in this fashion for two years, and I was finally fully qualified as a ninja. I went back to the Shinobi, but they were still reluctant to admit me without a recommendation from someone. Luckily, one of the very respected Shinobi, Trawl-sama, spoke up for me. He had heard of my struggle and felt I had more than proven myself worthy to be given a chance. He recommended me and I was accepted. My father was highly displeased. He tried to disown me, but Shika would not let him. I wanted to take her to live in my quarters, since I intended to be out proving myself for most of the time, but she declined and said she would prefer to stay at home. Father was so often drunk by now, that he could not even get out of his seat for most of the day. She said she would stay at home and look after him, so I…I left her there."

His voice did something Sakura had never heard it do before. It wobbled.

"She sounded rather content in her last letter. Happy almost. She said father was making good progress, but…I can't help but feel guilty at leaving her there…" He trailed off. "I only wanted his respect. His acknowledgement. Hell, a pat on the back would have been satisfactory. I've worked so hard to make him proud, but nothing is ever good enough." He spat into the bushes angrily and pushed himself off the rock.

It was a shock to feel a soft hand on his arm. He looked down to see Sakura watching him. He had almost forgotten she was there. She had a strange look on her face. Like she understood his pain somehow. His heart felt oddly light too, as though a massive burden had been lifted from his shoulders. It was the sort of feeling he got after telling Shika when something was bothering him. He did something more shocking than he had ever imagined he would do. He gave her a small, grateful smile.

"Thank you…for listening. You are very easy to talk to. Just like Shika."

She smiled back. "You did all you could. Be happy that she is content. She sounds like the sort of person who enjoys helping people. She sounds wonderful and I would love to meet her."

Sasuke nodded absentmindedly. "I think you would get along very well. Hopefully I should receive a letter from her soon. I have not heard from her in a while."

"Well you never know what's around the corner." She grinned. "Looks like they're on their way back." She observed.

Tenten was looking happy as a clam, a large sword cradled lovingly in her arms, with an amused looking Neji by her side. Hinata and Naruto were also returning, the pale eyed girl practicing some medic skills Sakura had taught her on Naruto's larger bruises. Once all together again, the group headed on, going around a corner, towards some stairs…

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Me: So, a little bit of Sasuke-kun's background here. I hope you all enjoyed.

**Inner Me: I think they all enjoyed the fast update more. This is a pretty weak chapter.**

Me: I know, but it's just a filler and a relationship developer. There's going to be a couple more of these and trouble is close for Sasuke. Don't worry though. We'll have some plot soon.

**Inner Me: We'd better. Review please!**


	12. The Mysterious 'Harpers'

Well, after who knows how long it's been, I bring you, ANOTHER CHAPTER

Well, after who knows how long it's been, I bring you, ANOTHER CHAPTER! DUNDUNDUUUUUUUUUN! I am sorry for the long wait, but my writer's block is awful and I just can't get my head round it. So, sorry if I'm a bit rusty! I don't know how long it will take to get chapters out from now on, things are kind of crazy, I'd rather not talk about it, but thanks for being patient.

LAST TIME: Sakura and the gang solved a mysterious murder involving skinned people and Sasuke shared his background. They now continue their journey…

_**Sound's Gate: Shadows of Fire**_

**Chapter 12**

**Tricks, pawns and illusions – The mysterious 'Harpers'**

The bald man practically jumped on her.

"Oh how glad I am to see you!"

Sakura took two large steps back and pushed the man off her. He was taller, far taller than her with purple face paint covering his eyes, cheeks and mouth. He was thin, almost to the point of it being grotesque and he wore a long, black cloak. His face looked familiar, but it took a few minutes for the kunoichi to remember why.

"Xzar?" She asked, looking closely.

He was a little different to how she remembered him, but he nodded in confirmation. The pink head looked around for his little companion, Montaron, a tiny dwarf with an overly large mouth and a battle axe to match. She had met Xzar and Montaron not long after the death of Haku, when she was on the road to find Tenten, whom Haku had said would help and protect her and Ino. He had joined her for a short period of time, delivering her safely, before leaving with his friend. Xzar smiled wistfully at her look of confusion.

"I see you are puzzled. No doubt you are wondering where Montaron has gone? I was just wondering myself, where your lovely little sister had vanished to. You never used to let her out of your sight."

Sakura winced slightly, and was surprised to find Sasuke at her side. It was most comforting to have the tall lad next to her, almost like a guard, since it still hurt talk about her younger sister.

"Ino is not here at the moment, but who are you?" He demanded.

"Why, Sakura! Your team used to be much politer than this, what on earth happened?" Xzar laughed.

Sasuke straightened slightly, but the kunoichi composed herself and laid a hand on his arm, restraining him lightly.

"Xzar, this is Sasuke. You know Tenten and Naruto. The other two are Hinata and Neji. You should hold your tongue a little more, some of my friends have short tempers." She glanced at the Uchiha standing stoically beside her.

"Quite, quite, forgive me." Xzar bowed respectfully, which Sasuke returned, though a little reluctantly.

"So Xzar…" Tenten had come forward to Sakura's other side. "What devilry are you up to now? In all the time I knew you, you were never around for no reason."

"No that's true." He looked thoughtful. "I was rather hoping you'd help me actually. As you've noticed, Montaron is not with me, something not really normal for us. Well, here is the thing, those 'Harpers' have captured him and I'm sure they're holding him captive in their building. I can't possibly go and rescue him myself as I'm rather busy. Could you…?"

Sakura looked to Tenten and took her to one side to discuss.

"What do you think?" She murmured.

"I don't know…The Harpers don't normally take people captive for no reason, their job is to keep the balance and make sure there is not too much evil or good in the world. It is…odd, to say the least."

"Tenten, you're a member of the Harpers aren't you?"

"Yes, I try my best to keep the balance as all Harpers must, but I cannot betray them."

"I'm not asking you to. Will you put in a good word for us if we do this for Xzar? It might be impossible to get in without your help."

Tenten considered her for a minute. "The Harpers are unbelievably tricky and will not hesitate to take advantage of you. Just because they are my associates does not guarantee your safety, only mine and it could be risky. Nothing is what it seems with them, but if you insist on doing this anyway, I'll help you however I can."

The two returned to the group and agreed to help Xzar, who happily pointed out the building that was the headquarters for all Harpers in this area. After promising he would wait for them in that spot, he bid them goodbye. Sakura in the lead, the group headed to the door of the building, where a man stood. He was dressed oddly, like a ninja but, different somehow as well, some kind of door guard she suspected.

"Excuse me sir, we need to enter." She called.

"No one to enter." Was the reply.

"Let me try." Whispered Tenten, who knew the man well. "Rylock."

"Tenten."

"I _must_ enter with my friends."

"Sorry, but no one can enter, not even Harpers. Not unless summoned."

"It's urgent."

"Well…" Rylock hesitated as he was quite fond of Tenten. "Tell you what. I can't just let you in, but if you perform a task for the Harpers, that's good enough to give you all entry."

"That sounds fine. What do you need?"

"Just down that alley there's a house belonging to a dangerous man named Prebek. He performs unnatural experiments on all kinds of beasts, so if you could put an end to this abomination against nature, I can let you past. You can use any means necessary."

"We'll do it." Neji interjected after an approving look from Sakura.

They walked down the alley and snuck cautiously through the door Rylock had indicated. The ninjas looked around in surprise. There were no beasts, not a hint of experiments anywhere, only fine carpets, rich silks, and expensive looking furniture everywhere, with two young adults, a lad and a girl, stood in the room.

"Oh no! Intruders!" The man shouted.

"We have to do something or the master will punish us!" His friend said, turning around in surprise.

The two must have been mere apprentices because when they attacked they were easy to dodge and pathetically predictable. Naruto had managed to outwit (AN. WHAT?!) one of them by jumping up and using his chakra to stick to the ceiling, while the girl dived through his legs and looked around confusedly for him. As she was distracted, looking for the blonde who had just 'vanished', Hinata had the male paralysed. She had sealed off a few vital points in his legs and spine, so he couldn't move. The fight was an easy one, and the two killed in a matter of minutes, but something was wrong.

"Why couldn't the Harpers have done this themselves?" Sasuke wondered. "They didn't put up a fight at all."

"They were all _too_ easy to kill, and I don't feel like we've done any real good from this, despite what Rylock said." Neji ran a finger over his chin in confusion.

"Well, maybe it will be explained in time. For now, let's get out of here. We should go back to the Harpers really." Hinata suggested, heading for the door.

Everyone followed, and eventually found themselves in front of Rylock once again, who seemed most pleased to see them.

"You've done it? That's great. I'll let you through now, but I warn you, stay on this floor. If you try to go up the stairs, it won't be pretty." He warned, before opening the door and granting them entry.

"What kind of warning was that?!" Naruto exploded when they got inside.

"The kind we need to find out about no doubt." Hinata said, looking around curiously.

"Right." Sakura said. "Split up, see what you can find. No one goes up the stairs. Any of them. Tenten, I want you to come with me please."

Tenten nodded, and the group did as she asked. The two kunoichi wandered around, until the emerald eyed beauty asked a very strange question.

"Why don't you wear a pendant?"

"What do you mean?" Her brown haired companion replied, rather surprised.

"All the Harpers around here. They're wearing large pendants of gold."

"That's not normally done."

"Do you think it has something to do with that warning Rylock gave us?"

"Possibly. Sakura." Tenten turned to her friend. "I can't help but feel we're being used. Like pawns in a game. Something is not normal, and those pendants are part of it. I just know it."

"Not a lot we can do now. We'll just keep our eyes open and be careful. I'm relying on you to tell me if you suspect anything else though."

"Of course."

"In the meantime, let's see if we can't find one of those pendants around here somewhere."

The two searched through drawers and cupboards, until finally Sasuke came over to them.

"I found this." He held up a large golden amulet, exactly the same as the pendants the Harpers were wearing.

Tenten took it from him and examined it closely.

"It's some kind of protection, from a jutsu or something, strong enough to cover the whole group if one of us wears it. I think this is our ticket upstairs, and I'll bet that's where they're keeping Montaron."

Summoning the group together, Sakura took the surprisingly heavy amulet, placing it around her neck. The group at once felt power surge into their bodies, the kind they got when they used a protection jutsu. Together they headed up the nearest set of stairs, with our pink haired beauty fingering the necklace anxiously.

'_Lathander, goddess of the sun and protector of the good, look after us.'_ She prayed.

They stepped onto the landing at the top of the stairs, and were all relieved when nothing happened.

"_**Who goes there?" **_A voice that echoed around the room like leaves caught in a storm, called. _**"Ah, you bear an amulet. Well then, welcome friends. You may stay as long as you hold that amulet."**_

"Please." Tenten stepped forward, being the Harper of the group. "Tell me friend, who are you?"

The voice chuckled amusedly, before a willowy figure, that bent and wavered like a flame in the wind appeared before them. It was not completely transparent, yet obviously not solid. It was almost human, but looked more like a white shadow than a real human would.

"_**My child, I am the protector of this level. I was once a Harper like you, but I passed on as everyone must. The Gods were kind enough to allow me to continue my work here by making sure none came through here save the chosen and approved, signalled by the amulet around their neck."**_

"What happens if they are not wearing a pendant?"

"_**Those who dare..." **_The voice grew to thundering proportions. _**"Those who dare enter here are given a punishment most fitting. A coat of white feathers and a song most pretty, yet held forever as they must be, in a cage suitable for such flighty people." **_The voice became soft again. _**"However, you are welcome here young ones. Feel free to stay as long as you like." **_And with that, the strange spirit vanished in a whisper of smoke.

"Well that was weird." Naruto shakily spoke after a few minutes of silence.

"That's one word for it." Neji mumbled.

Sakura was shaking like a leaf. Experiences like that always left her feeling strange, but she pulled herself together and listened closely. From what the spirit had said, intruders were changed into birds and put into a cage that must be stored on this floor somewhere. Sure enough, the faint chirping of birds could be heard from a door a little further down. She walked through and saw the largest bird cage she had ever seen. It reached up to the ceiling and was a large dome with a little door sticking out at the front. (AN. Picture an igloo that's absolutely huge and you've got what the cage looks like) Rather than bars, there were several huge panes of glass held together by the metal that made the basic shape of the cage. Inside were huge plants, green and lush, with hundreds of different types of birds fluttering and tweeting all over the place. Awestruck, Sakura stepped inside and turned around.

'_How do I know which is Montaron?'_ She wondered, turning the problem over in her mind. _'Maybe I should just call him.'_

"Montaron!" She shouted. "Montaron!"

To her surprise and delight a small white bird, no bigger than a woodpecker flew straight down to her, sitting quietly in her hand, tame as a dog or cat might be. She was surprised at how easy it was to catch Montaron, but not displeased. Together, hiding the bird as best they could, the group scurried out and back to Xzar.

"Here." Sakura thrust the bird into his hands.

"Why thank you. It will be so nice to have Montaron back, especially after…well, never mind."

"After what?" Sasuke's interest had been piqued.

"Well, my house was ransacked earlier and my two apprentices killed. Still, nothing that can't be repaired." And with that he began the jutsu.

Tenten's eyes widened, and she called out. "No! Don't turn that bird human! We've been tricked!"

But it was too late, the bird grew and grew, much taller than Montaron ever had been, and before it had fully formed, the person killed Xzar. Turning around, the woman smiled gently.

"I'm sorry you had to see that. My name is Lucette and might I say you've done a fine job in helping us. Xzar was causing many troubles for the Harpers, intending to use Montaron to get important documents from us. I have to admit you've been most entertaining to watch, but you can leave now. All is finished." And with that, Lucette left them.

Sakura shook with anger. "You were right Tenten, we've been pawns in their silly little game. Used by two different people, the Harpers and Xzar like some kind of toys. It was all a set up, the amulets and everything." She took off the amulet around her neck and threw it out to sea as hard as she could. They were about to leave when they were approached yet again.

"Don't we ever get any peace?" Naruto sulked.

"I know her." Tenten's eyes narrowed. "Her name is Meronia and she too is a member of the Harpers."

Meronia was a tall woman with long black hair and beautiful red eyes with streaks of purple through them. She carried herself as a noble would and confidence oozed out of her very skin. Indeed she was a beautifully stunning woman, with alabaster skin.

"Tenten." Her voice was low and plummy, rich and soft. "The Harpers need to speak with you. It is most urgent and you will be needed to stay a few days."

Tenten turned to Sakura, who gave her a nod. She bid her friends a fond farewell, and promised to return in a few days, 3 at the most.

"Be careful Tenten." Neji said to her quietly. "From what I have seen these Harpers are potentially dangerous and we cannot afford to lose you. You are too important."

"I'll be fine." She gave him a bright smile and left, following Meronia into the crowd.

"Now what? We're one member short." Sasuke grumbled.

"Simple. There isn't a lot we can do with Tenten gone, so we take a short break. Just a few days, until she returns. We can take on small missions and go sight-seeing." Sakura chirped.

"You are all welcome to stay at my home, since we don't know how long this peace will last." Neji offered generously.

"That's most kind of you." Hinata smiled.

"Yeah! We'll definitely take you up on that!" Naruto grinned with his arms behind his head casually.

The group walked towards the government district, when Sasuke stopped quite suddenly. The emerald kunoichi beside him turned in surprise.

"What's wrong Sasuke?"

He pointed to a boy running towards them, yelling his head off. He stopped when he reached the group and stood in front of Sasuke.

"Uchiha-sama! I bring news from your father. He says you are to go home as soon as you can. Oh sir! It's about your sister Shika!"

"Go home and tell him I'm on my way."

"We'll all go." Sakura's face was grave.

It did not take long to get to Sasuke's house at full speed and they walked in quickly, only to be greeted by silence. Sasuke shifted uncomfortably.

"Father?" He called out, his voice sounding the least confident Sakura had ever heard it. When he got no answer, he tried again. "Fugaku?"

"Shash -hic- kay?" A man with short brown hair and frown lines all over his face stumbled through the door of, what seemed to be, the kitchen. Sasuke looked at him with disgust.

"You've been drinking. I thought Shika was getting you off that sake stuff."

"Shika can't do -hic- anyfing anymore. -hic-"

"What do you mean?" His eyes narrowed and his fists clenched tightly.

"She'sh dead!" Fugaku shouted. "Killed in the night while you wash off gal-hic-gavalanting about. All cosh you washn't here! Shhhhirking your duty ashhh alwaysh."

Sasuke's eyes widened and he collapsed into a nearby chair, his father doing the same, though more out of drunkenness than shock. He thought he would pass out or be sick. How? How could this happen?

How could Shika be _dead?!_

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I forgot in the last chapter, Shika means deer in Japanese. There sorry, ; Not one of my better chapters, and shorter than I would like but, hey, what are you going to do? Meh, I'm also too tired to proof-read it, so if you see any mistakes, let me know and I'll fix them (probably). It seems a lot to write 9 pages when you're all clogged up with writer's block though! I hope you enjoy the chapter anyway! Thank you again for being so patient. -Throws flowers to everyone- Another chapter finished. I'm not going to even ask for reviews since I know I don't really deserve them. Sorry!


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